Courgette Mushroom Carbonara Recipes

BEAUTIFUL COURGETTE CARBONARA

Steps:

• Put a large pan of salted water on to boil.
• Halve and then quarter any larger courgettes lengthways. Cut out and discard any fluffy middle bits, and slice the courgettes at an angle into pieces roughly the same size and shape as the penne. Smaller courgettes can simply be sliced finely.
• Your water will now be boiling, so add the penne to the pan and cook according to the packet instructions.
• To make your creamy carbonara sauce, separate the eggs and put the yolks into a bowl (saving the whites for another recipe). Add the cream and grate in half the Parmesan, and mix together with a fork. Season lightly with sea salt and black pepper, and put to one side.
• Heat a very large frying pan (a 35cm one is a good start - every house should have one!) and add a good splash of olive oil. Cut the pancetta or bacon into chunky lardons and fry until dark brown and crisp.
• Add the courgette slices and 2 big pinches of black pepper, not just to season but to give it a bit of a kick. Pick, chop and sprinkle in the thyme leaves (reserving any flowers), give everything a stir, so the courgettes become coated with all the lovely bacon-flavoured oil, and fry until they start to turn lightly golden and have softened slightly.
• It's very important to get this next bit right or your carbonara could end up ruined. You need to work quickly. When the pasta is cooked, drain it, reserving a little of the cooking water. Immediately, toss the pasta in the pan with the courgettes, bacon and lovely flavours, then remove from the heat and add a ladleful of the reserved cooking water and your creamy sauce. Stir together quickly. (No more cooking now, otherwise you'll scramble the eggs.)
• Get everyone around the table, ready to eat straight away. While you're tossing the pasta and sauce, grate in the rest of the Parmesan and add a little more of the cooking water if needed, to give you a silky and shiny sauce. Taste quickly for seasoning.
• If you've managed to get any courgette flowers, tear them over the top, then serve and eat immediately, as the sauce can become thick and stodgy if left too long.

ZUCCHINI CARBONARA

Steps:

• Make the zucchini noodles using a spiralizer (if not using pre-made noodles).
• Fry the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until just barely crisp, about 8 minutes. Remove from the pan and drain on paper towels. Return the pan to the stove over medium-low heat and throw in the garlic and onions. Cook until golden brown, about 10 minutes.
• Mix together the eggs, yolks, Parmesan and cream in a bowl until smooth.
• Pour in the egg mixture into the skillet with the onions and garlic, carefully stirring the whole time. Season with salt and pepper. Add the peas and bacon, stirring until it's all combined and the mixture is warmed through. Add the zucchini noodles and carefully stir so the noodles don't fall apart.
• Serve immediately with extra Parmesan and basil.

HEALTHIER VEGGIE CARBONARA

Steps:

• Put a large pan of salted water on to boil. Halve the courgettes lengthways and scoop out and discard the core, then slice the courgettes at an angle into small diagonal pieces. Put the spaghetti in the pan of boiling water and cook following pack instructions.
• To make the creamy carbonara sauce, put the egg yolks in a bowl, add half of the grated cheese, and mix with a fork. Add up to 3 tbsp water to make the sauce less thick. Season and set aside.
• Heat a large frying pan on a medium to high heat and pour in a little olive oil. Fry the courgette slices and thyme leaves with a good grinding of black pepper for a minute or two until the courgette starts to soften, then add the mushrooms. Fry for 2-3 mins until golden and slightly softened. For the last minute of the cooking, add the garlic.
• Working quickly, drain the pasta, reserving a little of the cooking water. Toss the pasta in the pan with the courgettes and mushrooms, then remove from the heat and add a ladleful of the reserved cooking water and the egg and cheese sauce. Add the fresh parsley, if using, and the lemon zest and juice, then sprinkle over most of the remaining cheese. Stir everything together quickly to coat the pasta. The egg will cook if the pasta is still hot. If you're worried about it, put back on the heat for 1 min.
• Pour in a little more of the cooking water, if needed. You should have a silky and shiny sauce. Season to taste, then sprinkle with a little more cheese to serve. Eat straight away, as the sauce can become thick and stodgy if left for too long.

MUSHROOM CARBONARA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
• Heat the butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until the butter is melted and just starting to brown, about 1 minute. Add the mushrooms and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and crispy, about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to package directions.
• Combine the eggs, 1 cup of the Parmesan and several grinds of black pepper in a large bowl and whisk until well combined.
• Once the pasta is cooked, drain, reserving 1 cup pasta water. Add the pasta to the bowl and toss with tongs to coat. Add the mushrooms, half the pasta water and the remaining cheese, thinning with more water as needed so that the pasta is well coated.

COURGETTE & MUSHROOM CARBONARA

Steps:

• Put a large pan of water on to boil. Cut or snip the bacon into small strips, slice the courgettes length ways in quarters and then remove the soft seedy part by running a knife along each strip. Chop these long strips into 'penne' sized chunks. Strip the leaves off the thyme and set all aside.
• Heat the olive oil in a large deep pan and begin to fry the bacon on a moderately high heat. Once browned and crisp, add the courgette, mushrooms and thyme and turn the heat down and continue to cook slowly until veggies are soft. Stir often, coating the veggies in the fried bacon residue.
• The water should now be boiling, add the spaghetti and cook to packet instructions. Mix together the egg yolks, double cream and half the parmesan, season with black pepper (you could add salt if you like but I find that with the parmesan and bacon it is not necessary)
• Once your veggies are lightly browned and soft and your spaghetti is cooked, take the veggie pan off the heat. Drain the spaghetti keeping aside a little cooking water, and add this to the veggie pan immediately. Stir round and then quickly add the creamy sauce (the heat of the spaghetti will be enough to cook the eggs without scrambling them.) Stir through ensuring the spaghetti is coated in sauce and then add the remaining parmesan.
• Take straight to the table and serve from the pan! Eat up quickly, the fresher the better with this one - although I have microwaved leftovers before to satisfactory result.