Please welcome my friend and cookbook author Sally Vargas as she shares some of her favorite recipes with us, starting with this great spaghetti with bacon, tomatoes, and eggs!
Eggs for supper are not only quick and easy to make, they are somehow reassuring that all is right with the world. Add pasta and you have a supreme comfort meal.
Oh, and then there is the bacon. If you’re part of the ‘everything goes better with bacon’ club, you won’t be able to resist this dish.
Here are a few tricks that make poaching eggs stress-free.
One, salt the water generously: the salt makes the eggs buoyant. About 10 seconds after you’ve dropped the eggs into the simmering water, drag a wooden spoon around the edge of the pot. It creates a gentle whirlpool and the eggs float freely instead of sticking to the bottom of the pot.
Two, add two tablespoons of white vinegar to the water. The vinegar helps the protein in the egg whites coagulate quickly. You’ll still have wispy bits, but not as many as without it. And the vinegar taste dissipates.
Three: start with fresh eggs. As eggs age, the egg whites weaken and become less firm. Fresh eggs hold their shape better.
You could make this dish any time of year and swap out the basil for another herb, but during the summer months, carpe diem. Don’t pass up a single opportunity to use fresh basil and tomatoes.
You can use diced globe tomatoes, diced plum tomatoes, or smaller cherry tomatoes. Just make sure they’re juicy and sweet.
Spaghetti with Tomatoes, Bacon, and Eggs Recipe
While the water for the pasta and the eggs heats up, cook the bacon, garlic, and tomatoes. Then poach the eggs while the pasta is cooking. It all comes together in about 20 minutes.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons white vinegar, for poaching the eggs
- 12 ounces (3/4 box) spaghetti
- 6 slices (about 5 ounces) thick cut bacon, cut into 1/2-inch dice
- 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 7 to 8 (12 ounces) small (1 1/2-inch) tomatoes, quartered
- 4 large eggs
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 1/2 cup packed basil leaves, torn into pieces
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- Olive oil, for garnish
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