April showers bring May flowers, and plenty of new dishes to cook and eat.
And if you're looking for a pasta that's as bright as the season, look no further than this spring green spaghetti carbonara by Ina Garten.
"Spaghetti carbonara is true Italian comfort food, but it's incredibly rich," Garten writes in her "Modern Comfort Food" cookbook. "I updated it with lots of fresh green vegetables like English peas, snow peas, and asparagus."
Garten's spring green spaghetti carbonara is packed with ingredients, but ready in just 30 minutes. Here's how to make it.
Ina Garten's spring carbonara pasta comes packed with green veggies.
To make Garten's spring green spaghetti carbonara for six, you'll need:
- 12 ounces of spaghetti (she recommends De Cecco)
- 8 ounces of small-diced pancetta
- 1 cup of shelled fresh peas or frozen peas
- ½ pound of snow peas
- 12-14 thin asparagus (bottom third discarded)
- 5 scallions
- ¼ cup of fresh chives
- 1 lemon (zest and juice)
- ½ cup of heavy cream
- 2 extra-large eggs
- 2 extra-large egg yolks
- ¾ cup freshly grated Italian Parmesan cheese
I made Garten's pasta for three people, so I split these measurements in half while testing the recipe.
I always finish my prep before I start cooking, an important lesson I learned the first time I made carbonara.
Once you really get cooking with a carbonara pasta, everything needs to be mixed very quickly to achieve maximum creaminess (and ensure you're not eating raw egg).
I made sure I had every step prepped so I wouldn't be stressed when it was time to put Garten's pasta together.
To start, I cut my asparagus into 2-inch pieces and diagonally sliced my scallions, as her recipe instructed.
I also prepped the snow peas, chives, and lemon.
Since different parts of the lemon are required for different steps, I zested the lemon and then juiced it in a separate bowl.
I also julienned the snow peas and minced my chives.
My last step of prep was filling a large bowl with hot tap water.
Garten recommends using "the hottest tap water" to help heat the bowl you'll use to mix the pasta with the carbonara sauce.
Per her instructions, I set the full bowl aside while I cooked the pasta and pancetta. Garten says you should only pour the hot water out of the bowl "just before you drain the pasta."
I drizzled some olive oil into a sauté pan over medium heat and added the pancetta.
Garten recommends stirring your pancetta occasionally and cooking until it's browned, which took about eight minutes.
Once your pancetta is ready, transfer it to a plate lined with a paper towel.
As my pancetta cooked, I started on my pasta.
I brought a large pot of salted water to a boil, then added my spaghetti.
I cooked the pasta for eight minutes, stirring the noodles occasionally.
I saved a cup of the pasta water and then added some of the veggies.
I set the pasta water aside for the carbonara sauce, then threw in my snow peas, frozen peas, and asparagus with the spaghetti.
I let everything cook together for two additional minutes.
I prepped the carbonara sauce just before I drained my pasta.
I dumped the hot tap water out of the bowl, then added the cream, egg, egg yolk, and some of the pasta water — Garten recommends ¼ cup if you're making this dish for six — and whisked everything together.
Once my pasta was ready, I drained the spaghetti and veggies.
It was time to turn this pasta into a spaghetti carbonara!
I added my noodles and veggies to the carbonara sauce.
I tossed everything together with tongs, making sure the spaghetti absorbed the sauce.
I also added another splash of pasta water to keep the sauce creamy.
Then I threw in the rest of the ingredients.
I added the Parmesan cheese to the pasta, as well as the pancetta, scallions, chives, lemon zest, and lemon juice.
Then I seasoned everything with some salt and pepper.
After tossing everything together, I admired the bright pasta dish.
It's easy to see why Garten loves making this dish in the spring. The green of the veggies and the red of the pancetta pop really nicely against the spaghetti, making the pasta look really fresh and inviting.
You can also whip up a big serving of this dish in no time at all. Even though I split Garten's measurements in half, we still had more than enough food for three people.
I added some extra chives and Parmesan before serving the carbonara, which everyone loved.
I was a little apprehensive of this dish when I first read the recipe, I won't lie. I'm a huge fan of Garten's comforting red-sauce pastas, but her spring carbonara seemed, well, a little too green.
But I was pleasantly surprised! The carbonara sauce is creamy without feeling heavy, and it's balanced nicely with the fresh veggies. The pancetta also adds a lovely crunch and umami to the pasta — I just wish there had been a bit more of it.
I served the dish to my parents, who both loved it. My dad called it "light and lemony," while my mom thought it'd be ideal for a barbecue.
"I'd never think to put all of these things together, but they tasted very good," she added. "It's light and refreshing."
If you're looking for some inspiration for a spring dinner party or weekend brunch, Garten's carbonara will definitely pack a punch.
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Anneta Konstantinides is a lifestyle correspondent at Business Insider, with a focus on food and travel. She loves taking readers inside Michelin-starred kitchens and exploring the world of fine-dining, and she's always trying to find the best Ina Garten and Gordon Ramsay recipes. Her second home is LAX, where she's often catching a flight and reviewing airlines.Anneta has also been reporting on the pageant industry for the last six years and has interviewed every Miss USA and Miss Universe winner since 2019. She was a finalist at the LA Press Club Awards for her investigation into the 2022 Miss USA scandal and was featured in The New York Times Presents episode "How to Fix a Pageant" on Hulu in September 2023. After graduating from UCLA with a B.A in English Literature and a minor in film & television, Anneta worked as a journalist in London, Sydney, New York City, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC. You can reach Anneta at [email protected].
