So, on a side note... I've been having some odd medical issues and finally made a doctor appointment. It turns out I've got a pretty bad Vitamin D deficiency and I'm having some insulin problems. I have to go back next week for more testing regarding the insulin issues... to find out if I'm insulin resistant, diabetic or maybe (just) maybe had an off day or something like it.... Anyway... you might start to notice a healthy twist to the recipes I post. I'm not sure what my diet will look like after next week, but I'll let you know and post diet appropriate recipes afterward. So, that said... for right now, I'm eating EVERYTHING I can think of that I may not be able to eat after next week, or may only get on rare occasion or in moderation (ummm, no fun!).
OK, moving on... last night, we made our own little version of this dish from the Pioneer Woman website. Her version looks SMASHING, however as we are currently going for budget friendly we made some substitutions. We used regular bacon instead of pancetta, sweet bulb onions (NOT regular green onions) instead of leeks (um, because a bunch of leeks costs more than chicken breasts!!) and white cooking wine instead of a nice white wine. The picture below was taken with my cell phone, sorry for the poor quality, but you get the idea!!!
Our Ingredients:
- 1 box farfalle pasta, al dente
- 8 slices bacon, chopped
- 2 sweet bulb onions, thinly sliced (whites and light greens)
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 1/2 c white cooking wine
- 1/2 c heavy cream
- kosher salt & pepper, to taste
- Parmesan Cheese, shredded
Cook pasta as directed. *NOTE* The Pioneer Woman recipe says to reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water, we did this but did not need it. I would reserve the water, just in case.
Saute chopped bacon until fat is rendered and it browns. Add sliced sweet bulb onion and 2 Tbsp butter and cook for about 5 minutes. After about 5 minutes the onion should be translucent but not browning, pour in cooking wine, then cook an additional 3-4 minutes, until reduced and the smell of the wine is less pungent. Reduce heat to low, then pour in cream. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in Parmesan cheese. Toss in the pasta, *this is where you would add the pasta water to thin, if needed*. Serve with shredded Parmesan over the top. We sliced some of the green of the onion and placed that on top.
My husband and I were SO full last night we couldn't move afterward. Then, this morning, he was SO disappointed there wasn't a lick left b/c he wanted to have it for breakfast! We've been married 5 years and I've never, NEVER heard that out of his mouth - he LOVED this dish!!! It really was AMAZING!
Tonight, Kyle is grilling steaks and I'm making baked potatoes and a pot of fresh green beans with some garlic and salt pork. I am starving and can not wait for dinner time!! Reagan has already been fed and will be in bed in 45 minutes, so Kyle and I can enjoy a nice dinner with Dos Equis and some good ol' Texas Country on the patio... ahhhh....
Reagan goes back to school full time this week, so I'm getting all my projects lined up - will be sharing those soon! As always - thanks for reading and leave me some love (a.k.a. comments).
