Lunch

I headed over to what is left of Borders today at lunch to see what was left.  I went in with a small list of things that would be nice to get.  I didn’t find any of them. 

What I did find was kind of interesting.  I picked up a shrink-wrapped cookbook from an author I like (Jaime Oliver), a book about cheese, and a picture filled guidebook to poultry.  I got not only Chickens, but ducks too!  None of those items I even thought I wanted when I walked out the door for lunch.

Sometimes it feels good to just roll with it, and do things you don’t normally do.  I still needed lunch, so I headed somewhere I don’t typically go.

While I was sitting there enjoying the ambiance and fine food; I noticed a man standing by the highway off ramp with a sign.  I watched panhandling for change while I ate.  The last time I gave money to a panhandler was in San Francisco down by Fisherman’s Wharf.  There is a guy there who hides behind a potted ficus tree, scares the living crap out of site-seeing tourists, and then while they are all out of sorts hits them up for money.  He got me for the three ones in my pocket, and the Japanese tourists across the street who were watching presumably got good pictures they can remember forever. Today was going to be different. 

When I was done eating, before I got into my car, I fished a ten dollar bill out of my wallet and gave it to him.  He seemed genuinely surprised, and certainly grateful.  As I got into my car to go, he walked over to some nearby bushed, got a half empty bottle of water, and a couple of small bags of chips out of it, and hurried across the street.  He was obviously on a mission. So I sat and watched for a minute.

A woman appeared from behind a tree across the street and met him.  He showed her what he had, she smiled.  They then walked together, straight over the gas station convenience store, and I went back to work; where I get to do all of the “expected” things once more.

I almost wish I had given him a twenty instead.

Carbonara – the home game

It certainly isn’t what an Italian from the old country would call Carbonara, and it’s not what you’d find at an Americanized Italian restaurant.  It is however healthier than what you’d get eating out, and easier than the true Italian version.  Oh, and the kids love it.

Classically Pasta alla carbonara is a spaghetti dish covered with a sauce based on eggs, cheese, bacon, and black pepper.  Somewhere along the line here in America this became a cream based sauce. I’m guessing that incorporating the eggs without scrambling them was too hard, so to give the sauce the right mouth feel, cream was used instead.

I started with American style bacon and it’s too greasy.  I though about Prosciutto but it’s too salty (and expensive).  I finally settled on Pancetta.  Pancetta doesn’t render out very much fat so you have to start it with a little olive oil.  It also takes about 30 minutes to cook up to the right crunchiness.  Instead of spaghetti I’ve also been using a prepackaged fresh three cheese tortellini.

So,

I render 3 to 6 ounces of pancetta in a tablespoon or so of olive oil.  Once it’s the right crunchiness I take the meat out and add three tablespoons of flour and whisk.  Why yes, that is in fact a roux.  Since it’s being used as a thickener I only let it cook for a few minutes.  I then slowly whisk in 2 cup whole milk and bring it back up to a boil.  Then dump the pancetta back in, and add a 10 ounces frozen baby peas and bring it back up to a boil.  Then add quarter cup grated parmesan cheese mix it up and pour it over the cooked tortellini.

OK, time for a cheese snob moment.

I’m sorry, but the stuff in the green can that’s called parmesan at the store may as well be sawdust given how flavorful it is.  I’m also not suggesting that you use Parmigiano-Reggiano either.  Parmigiano-Reggiano is great when you grate it over the top of a dish it has a distinctive look that says, and tastes of, sophistication.  Since the cheese is getting blended into a sauce I like something between the green can and reggiano, and I’ve found a domestic parmesan cheese that I think is fabulous.