Fettucine carbonara, sounds so rich and decadent and tastes just the same, but it’s much lighter than you would think from the taste of it.  The no cook sauce is super simple and super delicious, with just egg yolks, nutmeg, fresh herbs and cheese, yum! If you want to make it extra special and a little more decadent, you can add in just a little cream, half & half or even mascarpone cheese, but even without the extra creaminess the finished dish is delicious and elegant enough for company.  

Most carbonara recipes you will find have the addition of pancetta, but since I don’t eat meat, I replace the pancetta with crispy oven roasted shitake mushrooms and chives, which I think is even better!

Shitakes and chives, ready to roast

Fettucine Carbonara with Crispy Roasted Shitakes

Author: Sweet Green Kitchen’s Jen Jones

Ingredients:

1 pound fettucine pasta (make it gluten free with your favorite GF pasta)

3 egg yolks

About ½ cup or a little more grated Romano cheese

Grated nutmeg – just a little

Olive oil

Salt

Chopped parsley and chives plus about 10 whole chives

6-10 shitake mushrooms – cleaned & sliced

Optional: about 2 Tablespoons cream or half & half or mascarpone – if you’re feeling decadent!

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 F. Prepare the shitake mushrooms and place on a small roasting pan, top with about 10 chives, drizzle with a little olive oil and a sprinkle of salt, roast until crisp about 15-20 minutes.

While the shitakes are roasting, fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.  Add the pasta plus salt and cook until al dente.  Reserve about a cup of the pasta cooking liquid, before draining.

 While the pasta and mushrooms are cooking, in a large shallow serving bowl, mix together the egg yolks.  If you’re going for decadence, add in a little cream, half & half or mascarpone.  Ladle in a couple of tablespoons of hot pasta water into the eggs and a bit of grated nutmeg (not much, it’s pretty powerful).  Once the fettucine is cooked, add into the egg sauce and quickly stir to combine.  The heat of the pasta will warm through the egg yolks and lightly cook them.  Stir in grated cheese until creamy, adding more pasta water if you like it saucier. Then top with chopped parsley and chives and finally the roasted shitakes & chives. Serve immediately, topping with extra grated cheese if you like.  Enjoy!

Creamy Fettucine Carbonara with Crisp Roasted Shitake Mushrroms & Chives

Tagged: Eggs, Pasta, Romano Cheese, Shitake Mushrooms