Springtime Spaghetti Carbonara Recipe (2024)

Make sure to temper the eggs with a ladle of pasta water to prevent them from scrambling on the pasta

I followed the recipe to the letter. There is way too much pasta for the amount of vegetables. The egg sauce turned out fine, it was just very, very bland. An entire pound of pasta totally overwhelms the amount of vegetables and the bacon was barely noticeable. I think it's salvagable, I will probably try it again but make those adjustments.

It helps to have the "large serving bowl" heated before you dump everything into it. I fill it with hot hot water, which of course I pour out just before the bowl is needed.

I learned classic Carbonara from one of my Italian friends who made it as his Mom used to make it. He used freshly grated nutmeg to spice up the sauce. I think it makes all the difference between bland and something really good.

You would have to use 4 times as much bacon, peas, and asparagus to get it to look like the picture. Given the suggestions below, I would add up it to at least 4 slices of thick bacon, 1 cup frozen peas (which you don't have to blanch first), and 1/2 lb of asparagus. The number of eggs is correct. May also want to save some of the pasta cooking water and add it necesseary.

This is delicious. The note from one reviewer about tempering the eggs to prevent them from scrambling was really helpful. I also prefer this with pancetta instead of bacon and fusilli instead of spaghetti (and I definitely don't use the whole pound of pasta)—makes it easier to distribute the pancetta and veggies.

I mixed together the eggs, the cheese and a pinch of nutmeg but did not use any milk. I did add a bit of the pasta water to this mix to temper it, as recommended by others. No curdling - hurray! I had some lovely fresh chanterelles, so I added those as well, after sauteing them for a couple of minutes in butter. My grandson was disappointed I hadn't made more. That means it's definitely a keeper.

Definitely half the pasta for the ratio of bacon, egg, and veg in this recipe. Also:
- sautéed half cup white onion in the bacon grease before adding peas and asparagus, which adds depth of flavor
- use pecorino Romano instead of parmasan for a much better complement to the smoky pork flavor
- certainly a good idea to temper egg mixture w water from pasta
- finally pepper: needs a robust amount of fresh black pepper ground to finish and mix well throughout

I’m curious...you used raisins instead of basil, cheddar instead of parmigiana, and only 1 egg. And you were surprised that it tasted strange? Thank you for the laugh!

I used frozen peas and sautéed them directly together with the asparagus - no need to boil them first. I set 7 minutes for the asparagus and put in the peas at the 4-minute mark.

This recipe can turn out delish!! Read the comments before proceeding. Yes, significantly increase the bacon & veggies. Don't you dare cook or boil the veggies! Decrease the pasta by 20%. Save a half cup of pasta water to add back later to thin the sauce as needed. Classic carbonara needs a full cup of cheese (75% parm, 25% pecorino romano) along with a half cup of dry white wine (use Soave). Add a minced shallot to the bacon after the fat is rendered.
Yum!!

I made this per the recipie, very bland but good balance of textures. I’d suggest the following amends; - use fewer eggs (probably half) and only the yolks - more cheese, at least double- lots of black pepper - double the bacon - if using frozen peas, let them sit out and add to the sauté pan, skip the boiling step - season to taste but additional cheese should correct the lack of flavor Essentially, make a classic carbonara and add veggies. Pancetta > bacon

I used proscuitto instead of bacon because we had some on hand. It is not as fatty of a meat so I added some butter to the sauté pan so there would be enough oil to cook the vegetables. I also used less pasta to try to cut down on the carbs and I don't think the proportions of the recipe would have been as good had I used a whole pound. I used two whole eggs and three yolks plus 1/4 cup reserved pasta water for the sauce and to temper the eggs a bit. Sauce ended up nearly perfect.

This is delicious and easy. I made it with broccoli and asparagus. I boiled the broccoli for about 3.5 min before adding the asparagus for another 2 min. I didn’t have any bacon so just sautéed the veggies in butter. I used fresh thyme instead of basil, as that was what I had. I did need some salt and hot pepper for kick and I added some water from the pasta to make it even creamier. Excellent.

16 Oz of pasta is 8 servings. If you use 4 servings (8 Oz) you get the right proportions of pasta and vegetables, but the reduced mass of pasta does not cook the eggs. The recipe might need to be rethought out.

I made this while settling into our new apartment (and kitchen) in Montpellier, France. We went to the farmers' market under the acqueduct and bought fresh, local everything, including cheese and pasta. I shelled my own peas for the first time since childhood. The flavors sang! Do what you can to get the freshest possible ingredients. This was fabulous.

Used a whole bunch of asparagus, quadrupled the basil, doubled the peas, added a minced shallot to when the peas asparagus were sauteing, replaced whole milk with oat milk, topped with BOMBA Calabrian peppers pecorino and it was PHENOMENAL!

Excellent recipe. I used only half the spaghetti and tempered the eggs before adding. Wonderful recipe, I will make it again.

I'm giving this four stars based on the adjustments made after reading the cooking notes others had left. Used 8oz spaghetti and doubled the bacon, peas, basil and asparagus. A nice, lighter take on traditional carbonara perfect for a Spring weekday supper.

Note to self: always read the comments by other cooks. Thank you all for a delicious supper because of your notes: halved pasta, doubled veggies, added diced onion, crisp bacon, both frozen and snow peas, some cherry tomatoes, lots of fresh basil. No milk. The TIME: more like 40” . Two of us were prepping/cooking. Still a tasty, spring supper!

Yum! Going into the regular Spring rotation. I used 1/2 lb spaghetti, 1 1/2 bunches asparagus, generous amounts of parm and pecorino, and 3 eggs, which I tempered by whisking in a stainless steel bowl held above the boiling pasta water for a minute or so. And bacon of course. Sublime! Used chives in place of basil, seemed more appropriate to the season. Skipped the milk.

Drained the pasta (12 oz) into the big bowl pour the water out of the bowl. Instant hot bowl. Temper egg mixture and put pasta and egg simultaneously and stir immediately. Double the veggies, use frozen peas, pancetta--get a thick slice and dice. I chopped some beginning to get tired baby spinach and dropped it into the spaghetti for the last 45 seconds or so of cooking. Used pecorino romano which I generally prefer to parm, and put the nutmeg in the egg mixture. Loved it.

Not sure why some people in the comment seem to have experienced problems with the recipe. It turned out REALLY GOOD—fresh and creamy! Just make sure to prevent eggs from scrambling.

I thought this was good and surprisingly light. I took others advice and doubled the asparagus and peas, I also tempered the eggs with pasta water and there was no curdling. I did use only two whole eggs and three egg yolks as five whole eggs seemed excessive. The result was a nice creamy sauce.

Added extra veggies as a previous reviewer suggested. After the first bit added extra cheese to combat the blandness.

Love everything about this recipe but the one thing I have done each time is use at least 3-4 times the bacon it calls for. I love bacon so I don’t mind letting it be a front and center part of the show next to the sweet peas and such!

Cut the recipe in half with 8 oz of pasta and lots of veggies. I used two large eggs tempered a bit with pasta water. The result was too eggy, not all of it incorporated into the pasta. So I recommend not tempering to get the correct consistency. I also recommend micro planing the Parmesan Reggiano. However, very tasty, if I make again I’ll use one large egg.

Not bad! I wanted to freshen it up a bit more so I added a squeeze of lemon and topped with crumbled feta. Also had mushrooms in the fridge so I added that as well. I would make the sauce in a separate bowl first with some pasta water so you dont end up with scrambled eggs!