Pasta Carbonara

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Hello…hello…hello…..anyone still out there? I’m still here, but under a mountain of laundry, diapers, and middle of the night feedings…still! David slept through the night at 3 weeks (I know, I know), so imagine my surprise that Jonathan still enjoys a 5am snack at 2 months old (yes, two months already—how?)!

^^^ Everyone gets to help these days!

^^^ night owl

^^^ 2 months old, and obviously has quite the appetite! He fits right in around here.

But we are hanging in there and pressing on! And I’m cooking—I really am! Despite his middle of the night snacks, Jonathan is a great afternoon napper, which makes for yummy dinners—just not a whole lot of time to write about them. But here I am—making it happen! I asked on Instagram today which recipe you would like first and the people have spoken—Pasta Carbonara was the overwhelming favorite! I’ll try to get my Lentil Salad up in the near future though because it is also delicious, and would make a great protein packed salad to share at a 4^th of July BBQ!

A few weeks ago my mom asked me to give her an idea for dinner—she wanted pasta, but not a red sauce, for her and my dad. I suggested Pasta Carbonara, one of my pre-vegan favorites. And it got me thinking—I wonder if I could make a vegan version? Vegan egg and bacon pasta—no problem, right? I googled and of course found a few recipes, and tried one from Luminous Vegans. Delish! It used Vegg—a vegan egg product. It was really tasty, but I wanted to come up with one that used some regular grocery store ingredients as well. My very favorite Mac and Cheese recipe uses cashews and Brazil nuts, so I decided to use them as my cream sauce base.

This recipe is a winner! I’ve made it a couple of times—each time because Irving, my very not vegan husband has asked for it! David loves it too—how awesome is it to hear your 3 year old begging for “Brussels sprout pasta!”? Hope you all enjoy this as much as we do!

Pasta Carbonara with Brussels Sprouts
1 lb pasta, cooked according to package directions

2 c hot water (from the tap—no need for boiling)
1/2 c cashews
½ c brazil nuts
4 cloves garlic
½ t salt
1 T nutritional yeast
2 T garbanzo flour (optional but gives an eggy flavor, I get mine at a local Indian market, I think Bob’s Red Mill also has it in more traditional grocery stores)
1 T olive oil
black pepper to taste

1 lb brussel sprouts, sliced thinly
2 shallots, sliced thinly
1 T olive oil
1 package Upton’s Naturals bacon (or other vegan bacon, or make your own!)

4 T vegan butter (like Earth Balance)

Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook pasta to desired consistency.

In the meantime, blend all sauce ingredients, hot water through black pepper in your blender until mostly smooth. I use a Vitamix which is great for the nuts. If you don’t have a high powered blender, try soaking your nuts in water for 4 hours before using, or put them in a small saucepan with water and bring them to a boil, remove from heat, and allow to sit for 10 minutes before draining and using.

Heat 1 T olive oil in a large skillet. Add bacon and spread out in pan, allowing to cook for a minute or two. Then add shallots and Brussels sprouts and continue to cook until slightly browned (don’t over cook the Brussels sprouts—you want to retain their nice green color!). Alternately, cook the bacon til crispy, then remove from pan and set aside while you cook the veggies. I find that the consistency isn’t a whole lot different either way, but cook the way you like! These days I just like saving time!

Once the pasta is cooked, drain and set aside. Pour the sauce mix into the empty pasta pot and heat over medium low heat. You want to cook the garbanzo flour for a minute to get rid of the raw taste! Add the pasta back into the pot and stir to coat. Add the butter on top and continue to mix til the sauce is a little smoother and creamy. Toss in the bacon Brussels sprout mix and mix well. Serve and amaze your guests!