Friday, December 20, 2013

Recipe Swap Onion "Carbonara"


Per Nana~
When I first read through this recipe my reaction was "yuck". Imagine eating limp onions and adding cream sauce. Gross. Well let me tell you - this was a shocker of a recipe. I started out trying to cut it in half but then couldn't figure out how to split an egg yolk.  At Hubby's suggestion I decided to make the whole recipe, with the understanding that it would go in the trash if it wasn't great.
Quelle surprise ! 
 We loved it.  
 I steamed the onions earlier in the day and covered them. Sauteed the bacon and then at the very last minute put the whole thing together. FANTASTIC.  As I looked on the counter I realized that I forgot to add the parmesan cheese to the dish. When I finally added the cheese it was over the top in flavors. The results look just like linguine pasta with carbonara sauce. Unbelieveable.

Per Tricia~
The collection of recipes in "Around My French Table" NEVER ceases to amaze me. I have dabbled in low carb and tried many a carb substitute type recipe, but I can assure you I never heard about onions in lieu of pasta. And to find that it was Patricia Wells who shared the recipe with Dorie. Wow.  Of course I don't imagine they had Dr. Atkins in mind when creating this dish but it was a low carb revelation nonetheless. I personally enjoyed it in a smaller dose and intend to try it as a topping for chicken breast, but my hubby could not get enough of it as main course.  
I also had to chuckle because I realized this week that he basically says "oh, this is good" to every dish. (I am very lucky that way).  But typing does not do justice to the delivery that these same words get...... depending on how he truly feels. Suffice it to say that this week's was more like:"OH ! This is REALLY GOOD !"  Which of course completely distracted me from the onion dish and made me wonder what he had thought about prior dishes declared "really good"  :)

Well played, Dorie. Well played.
Merry Christmas !

15 comments:

  1. Bill went back for seconds!!! So glad it was a hit with your families, too!!! MERRY CHRISTMAS to you both!!! xo

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  2. I didn't get to try this myself, but Joe absolutely loved it (after declaring before hand that it was going to be yucky...) Glad this was such a hit for both of you as well.

    Merry Christmas, ladies - both to you and your families.

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  3. Well played Dorie (and Patricia!) indeed - what a revelation this was!

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  4. This was interesting and goooood! Due to a hectic week, I only made this as a snack not a meal for one, me; and DH said to make it for his dinner during the weekend!

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  5. This one fell squarely into the "never would have tried it were it not for FFwD" category for me as well. It's these surprising recipes which really keep me going and give me the courage each time a new weird or scary one comes up. So happy to hear that it was a pleasant surprise for you as well.

    Merry Christmas to both of you.

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  6. I, too, was shocked how delicious this was!

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  7. Nana, Dorie often surprises me too. Last week's chopped liver, for example. Tricia, glad this was a homerun. Love your cat. Merry Christmas to you both!

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  8. I love onions, but no, I would never have put a carbonara sauce on them…never in a million year. Thanks to Dorie too.. Merry Christmas to you both.

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  9. Quelle surprise indeed! Glad it was a success in both your kitchens. The leftovers made a great frittata filling for breakfast this morning. Merry Christmas to you both.

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  10. I have to agree with both of you. I was not prepared to like this at all. It just sounded weird to me but we all know that Michel Richard, Patricia Wells and our Dorie don't "do" weird so I gave it a go. Although I did put it on top of pasta, I enjoyed it both ways immensely (just like the two of you). But, with the pasta?? Wow. And, because so much of it can be done ahead, this would make a great casual Friday or Saturday night supper with friends - green salad, crusty Italian bread, and spaghetti with onion carbonara. LOVED your card. Mine is in the mail. Merry Christmas to you both and to your families. Nana, I hope you rate another "breakfast in bed" over the holidays!

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  11. This one really surprise me. Still trying to decide if it's a reapeat. It's much better the next day.

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  12. This one really was a surprise winner, wasn't it? Kevin is always on the lookout for good gluten-free dishes and this is one we'll definitely revisit. I had to laugh at both your stories - I was really worried about whether this would go to waste, too - I needn't have worried at all.

    Have a very Merry Christmas!

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  13. I love the "necklace" on the cat. Too cute! I agree. This one was so much better than I imagined it was going to be.

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  14. This was yummy! Sorry I'm late with comments (and everything else). Happy that this was such a hit!

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