Zucchini Carbonara

This is a recipe from my all time favorite chef, Jamie Oliver. I love that man. I know my husband doesn't read my blog so I'm not worried about him knowing that. He probably already does though...... Anyway It's not only his rustic, homey cooking style that I love so much but his food philosophy too. He is my inspiration and a wonderful advocate for REAL food. I am trying to slowly cook my way through his new book which is AMAZING. Anyway enough about Jamie.... I adapted this slightly because I had a few other ingredients in the fridge I wanted to use up and I used the last of the speck I had in here too but the sauce is the same. I encourage you to check out your local farmers market to try to find some wonderful green and yellow zucchini's to make it a little more interesting. The sauce is delicious, creamy and super easy as long as you remember to take the pan off the heat for a bit before you add it!

What you need for 2 people
1/2 a pound of penne pasta
3 medium zucchini cut into pieces about the same size as the penne.
*optional* Any other soft veggies that you have in the fridge like tomatoes, mushrooms or peppers
6 or so slices of speck, pancetta or bacon, cut into chunky pieces
2 egg yolks
1/4 cup of whipping cream
A handful of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
chopped fresh parsley or basil or thyme

FILL a large pot of water on the stove and add a generous amount of salt.
WHILE your waiting for the water to boil slice up your zucchini and other veggies if you are using them.
ADD your pasta to the pot and set for the recommended time.
IN a small bowl combine the egg yolks, cream and half of your handful of Parmesan cheese. Mix together with a fork and season lightly with salt and pepper. Set aside.
HEAT a large deep frying pan or saute pan on medium heat and add a little olive oil. When oil is hot add the speck, pancetta or bacon and fry until it is golden brown and starting to crisp. Add zucchini and other optional veggies plus the chopped fresh herbs and stir to coat the veggies in the lovely bacon flavoured oil. Fry until zucchini start to turn slightly golden brown. Add a couple good pinches of pepper to give it a little kick.

WHEN the pasta is cooked, drain it but reserve a ladleful or so of the pasta water. Quickly toss the drained pasta in the pan with the veggies then REMOVE FROM THE HEAT (or your egg yolks will scramble!) and add the ladleful of pasta water and the creamy sauce. Stir together quickly and add the rest of the Parmesan cheese. Serve right away or the sauce will start to get thick. You can add more pasta water if needed.