Spaghetti and meatballs... which are the best recipes?

[ChromeToasterX]

Man, that Prego meatball sauce is hard to come by. Not even the Internet has it- the only online store that had anything on it was Amazon and not only is it not in stock (you can sign up for e-mail alerts for when it arrives), but it's a 12 pack only

 

[Gatefan1976]

I don't know if these guys exist outside of Australia, but surely *something* like them should:
http://www.latinafresh.com.au/index.aspx?CSRT=12535293333693694245

 

[Bluce Ree]

We taught the world how to eat and then you all went and screwed that up, too, with your "local variations" on fine Italian dishes. Try to find a good pasta carbonara anywhere in North America. Most places will serve up Alfredo with bacon and call it carbonara, not realizing carbonara is not a sauce. :puke:

 

[Overmind One]

We taught the world how to eat and then you all went and screwed that up, too, with your "local variations" on fine Italian dishes. Try to find a good pasta carbonara anywhere in North America. Most places will serve up Alfredo with bacon and call it carbonara, not realizing carbonara is not a sauce. :puke:

A lot of people do not realize that because they have not had authentic Italian cuisine. I cringe when I hear somebody refer to "carbonara sauce", or (god forbid) it is printed on a menu in a restaurant that claims to serve it. The REAL deal has egg in it and usually uses pork like bacon or ham (or both). It makes a good breakfast!

 

[shavedape]

We taught the world how to eat and then you all went and screwed that up, too, with your "local variations" on fine Italian dishes. Try to find a good pasta carbonara anywhere in North America. Most places will serve up Alfredo with bacon and call it carbonara, not realizing carbonara is not a sauce. :puke:

I LOVE carbonara!!! I've cut way back on carbs but if I'm going to eat pasta then carbonara is at the top of my list. Like you I'm shocked and sickened by the crap that restaurants try to pass off as carbonara these days. Mushrooms in some milky cream sauce? That isn't pasta carbonara, that's Americanized crap. Mushrooms don't even belong in that recipe. Just eggs, cream, Italian bacon (pancetta) and a lot of fresh ground black pepper. Top it off with tons of good parmesan cheese (or mix it in) and it's heaven!

 

[Stonelesscutter]

We taught the world how to eat and then you all went and screwed that up, too, with your "local variations" on fine Italian dishes. Try to find a good pasta carbonara anywhere in North America. Most places will serve up Alfredo with bacon and call it carbonara, not realizing carbonara is not a sauce. :puke:

Sorry. My mistake.

 

[Bluce Ree]

I LOVE carbonara!!! I've cut way back on carbs but if I'm going to eat pasta then carbonara is at the top of my list. Like you I'm shocked and sickened by the crap that restaurants try to pass off as carbonara these days. Mushrooms in some milky cream sauce? That isn't pasta carbonara, that's Americanized crap. Mushrooms don't even belong in that recipe. Just eggs, cream, Italian bacon (pancetta) and a lot of fresh ground black pepper. Top it off with tons of good parmesan cheese (or mix it in) and it's heaven!

Close. There's no cream, though. That's Americanized. You fry the bacon, or pancetta, then you pour the bacon grease from the pan into the cooked pasta along with the bacon, egg yolks, ground pepper and tons of Parmesan cheese. A good carbonara is relatively dry except for a bit of an oily texture. I can make a kilo of pasta carbonara here at home and it won't last the day.

 

[Overmind One]

I LOVE carbonara!!! I've cut way back on carbs but if I'm going to eat pasta then carbonara is at the top of my list. Like you I'm shocked and sickened by the crap that restaurants try to pass off as carbonara these days. Mushrooms in some milky cream sauce? That isn't pasta carbonara, that's Americanized crap. Mushrooms don't even belong in that recipe. Just eggs, cream, Italian bacon (pancetta) and a lot of fresh ground black pepper. Top it off with tons of good parmesan cheese (or mix it in) and it's heaven!

Yep, I have had to cut most of my Italian foods from my diet (my favorite food!) because of the low carb lifestyle I live now. But Since discovering CarbaNada pasta from Al Dente (the company), its coming back on the menu in modified form! Americanized foods piss me off, because most of the time its there to compete with the real thing being offered in restaurants who cook the REAL deal. Its like expecting a great enchilada from a Chinese take-out.

 

[Graybrew1]

Bluce and Shaved, that is exactly why I don't use "sauce" of any kind. The chopped seasoned stewed tomatoes tastes just as good with half the calories. I throw some veggies in to make it more filling and even healthier.

I hate jarred sauce of any kind.

FYI, a bit OT but a white pizza made from whole wheat flour would also be my choice. With fresh spinach,garlic,tomatoes and veggies very similar flavors the the pasta. Again...........never any sauce for me.

 

[Bluce Ree]

A lot of people do not realize that because they have not had authentic Italian cuisine. I cringe when I hear somebody refer to "carbonara sauce", or (god forbid) it is printed on a menu in a restaurant that claims to serve it. The REAL deal has egg in it and usually uses pork like bacon or ham (or both). It makes a good breakfast!

Oh, yeah! I've had left over carbonara for breakfast. Another way to prepare left over spaghetti/spaghettini/etc is to toss it into a lightly greased pan, break an egg or two so the pasta sticks together and fry it into a kind of pizza that you can slice and eat. Left over carbonara made this way is out of this world. I believe it's actually called "Pizza di spaghetti" in Italian or, at least, that's what we used to call it at home.

 

[shavedape]

Close. There's no cream, though. That's Americanized. You fry the bacon, or pancetta, then you pour the bacon grease from the pan into the cooked pasta along with the bacon, egg yolks, ground pepper and tons of Parmesan cheese. A good carbonara is relatively dry except for a bit of an oily texture. I can make a kilo of pasta carbonara here at home and it won't last the day.

Yeah, I was thinking egg yolks but said eggs. I know it's basically got four ingredients and that's it. That's the beauty of it. Great stuff! I'll try it without cream next time.

ETA: Been so long since I made it at home that I don't remember if I added cream or not. A chef where I used to work would make it with cream so that might be why it's stuck in my head. I much prefer the simple egg and parm taste.

 

[Bluce Ree]

Yep, I have had to cut most of my Italian foods from my diet (my favorite food!) because of the low carb lifestyle I live now. But Since discovering CarbaNada pasta from Al Dente (the company), its coming back on the menu in modified form! Americanized foods piss me off, because most of the time its there to compete with the real thing being offered in restaurants who cook the REAL deal. Its like expecting a great enchilada from a Chinese take-out.

I learn something new every day.

http://www.aldentepasta.com/product-categories/carbanada/

I have to get my hands on some to try.

 

[Bluce Ree]

Yeah, I was thinking egg yolks but said eggs. I know it's basically got four ingredients and that's it. That's the beauty of it. Great stuff! I'll try it without cream next time.

You can throw in whole eggs, which I do sometimes just out of pure laziness. IMO, it changes the taste slightly but still amazing.

Geez. I'm getting fat just thinking about it.

 

[Gatefan1976]

Here is a US company that does the same stuff as the latina one in Oz:
http://www.buitoni.com/Products/#/home

 

[Gatefan1976]

One for our to Cali folks:
http://www.montereygourmetfoods.com/index.cfm/mpc_products_wheat.htm

 

[Overmind One]

I learn something new every day.

http://www.aldentepasta.com/product-categories/carbanada/

I have to get my hands on some to try.

You can now find this in the SUPERMARKET! I was making a 10-mile trip to LoCarbU in Los Angeles to buy it, then it showed up at Whole Foods, now I can even get it in Albertson's markets! Its fairly cheap too, but more expensive than regular pata. It tastes exactly like full-carb pasta and does al dente GREAT. Worth a try.

 

[Bluce Ree]

I made my girlfriend a real lasagna yesterday (all from scratch except the pasta), which is another dish that's been massacred here. It's made with meat balls, marinara, sliced hard boiled eggs, shredded mozzarella and topped with loads of Parmigiana (some variations use ricotta cheese and meat sauce). After it's baked, it's broiled for about 5 minutes to gratinee the parmesan on top.

Recently, she made me a Haitian lasagna, which is closer to Moussaka than lasagna, IMO, but DAMN is it good! I'm gonna ask her to make it again.

 

[Stonelesscutter]

I made my girlfriend a real lasagna yesterday (all from scratch except the pasta), which is another dish that's been massacred here. It's made with meat balls, marinara, sliced hard boiled eggs, shredded mozzarella and topped with loads of Parmigiana (some variations use ricotta cheese and meat sauce). After it's baked, it's broiled for about 5 minutes to gratinee the parmesan on top.

Recently, she made me a Haitian lasagna, which is closer to Moussaka than lasagna, IMO, but DAMN is it good! I'm gonna ask her to make it again.

Water in my mouth right now!

 

[Bluce Ree]

Water in my mouth right now!

You and me both, brother. If I keep this up, I'm going to undo myself into a lard-ass.

 

[shavedape]

Water in my mouth right now!

I'm just going to let this one pass.