Tasty Spaghetti alla vegeteri "ara" with homemade garlic bread and really simple salad

Herbs and parmigiana cheese

This blogpost is from last year. And it was actually written just days after we arrived home from a two week vacation in the Austrian Alps. Now that time is a upon us again. The next weeks will be devoted to good fun with the whole family. We will drive down to the Alps from Lund, where we reside, a journey 1400 km due south before we come to our favourite place in the Alps. That place is Skihotel Speiereck in St. Michael in Lungau which lies below Mount Speiereck and Grosseck. We have been coming here in the past years. This will be our fifth visit

Even though you stay at the roots of Mt. Speiereck you are welcome to try out other nearby resorts, as it is included in the skipass. So we have driven around the different sites and skied in the Austrian Alps. In the hills of Mt. Aineck a farmer runs a bar/restaurant that is quite different than his competitors. Farmer Schlögelberger breeds dear and many of the dishes on his menu reflect just that. I recommend the Hirchbraten mit Knödel und Preiselbeeren (venison steak with dumplings, jam and brown sauce) - quite delicious. 

This recipe came about just after we arrived home from the Alps. Having driven the long journey home we where all feeling the post Alpy-blues. And when I feel blue I always want to make Spaghetti Carbonara, one of the ultimate comfort foods. But after two weeks in the Alps and its local cuisine - bacon was not on the To do lists - but vegetables are! So I concocted this recipe, a fusion between health and sin - the Spaghetti Vegeteri "ara". 

I held true to the methodology of Spaghetti Carbonara making except instead of the Spaghetti I used Bavette, which are thin pasta pipes. Oh, and one thing. I use a splash of cream in my Carbonara. This might sound as blasphemy to true believers who say that no Carbonara would have that on its list of ingredients. Put such is the freedom of speech - and interpretation in the kitchen. 

Tasty Spaghetti alla vegiteri "ara" with homemade garlic bread and really simple salad


First slice the vegetables, 4 cloves of garlic, one medium red onion - cut finely. Fry in dash of olive oil until soft, careful not to brown. Then add one sliced leek, half a zucchini and 15 quartered button mushrooms. Season. Fry under low to medium heat for 10-15 minutes. Add 50 ml of cooking cream (12% fat) and bring to a boil, and reduce fifty percent. Keep warm.

Fry lovely vegetables

Then whisk four large eggs, add seasoning, 30 gr of freshly grated parmigiana cheese, some chopped fresh parsley and basil and set aside until the pasta is cooked. 

Boil the pasta according to the packet in salted water. Generally you use 1 L water for 100 gr of pasta. And it is important too boil in salted water - it opens the pasta up and allows the subsequent sauce to penetrate it with more ease. 

When the pasta is cooked you have to move fast. Drain the pasta, fast! Throw on the vegetables, eggs and stir together. Put the lid back on and leave to stand for a couple of minutes. The heat from the pasta will cook the eggs - and turn it into a silky smooth sauce.

Garlic bread

We made some garlic bread (not entirely homemade for I bought the baguette in the supermarket. But we used some homemade garlic oil, made from D
delicious Lautrec garlic from France, noted to be one of the best in the world. 

We had some white wine with the meal. Something had to be done to cure the post Alp blues. On our way home we had stopped at the Bordershop in Germany which offers cheap wine and beer. We got a deal on a few cases of wine including this lovely Peter Lehman Australian Chardonnay from 2008. It is a classic Chardonnay in the sense it has all its lovely qualities. Fruity in the nose and same on the palate, slightly buttery with some oak tones. 

Spaghetti alla Vegeteri"ara"

Lastly, just serve the pasta in a bowl, add a generous amount of freshly grated parmigiana cheese. 

Bon appetit!