Bacon-Cheese Appetizers

Bacon-Cheese Appetizers

From Laurie Tarcinale (a childhood friend of Mom's)

1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 cup crumbled crisp bacon (6-7 slices)
2 tsp. horseradish
1 tbsp. wine (Laurie recommends Sherry)

Mix ingredients. Spread on slices of party-rye bread. Broil until bubbly.

Personal Note: Strangely tasty. I put in like double the amount of horseradish 'cause it's the ingredient that seems to really make the appetizer pop. I also cut up the bacon into bits first and then crisp it up, but that's just 'cause it's more convenient to me. Also, I often use a dry white wine instead. Like most cases of broiled food, this takes almost no time in the oven; I had it in this time for 5 minutes and it was on the edge of burning. Yeah. I put the dolloped slices on a cookie sheet...I can usually get about 24 on a single sheet since I don't have to worry about expansion or edges sticking. We've had this appetizer in our repertoire for years; I remember eating it at holiday parties back when I was super young (you know, those parties that, as memories, have everything in a rosy, glassy hue and have fuzzy edges in your mind). It's on an old folded, stained yellow legal pad sheet along with a few other handwritten party appetizer recipes from Laurie. Mm.

Spaghetti Carbonara

Spaghetti Carbonara

Show: Taste (1996 TV Food Network)
Yield: 4 servings

1/2 pound piece of pancetta
4 cloves of garlic
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 large eggs
1/4 cup freshly grated Romano
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
a liberal grinding of pepper
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 pound cooked spaghetti, drained and hot

Cut a 1/2 pound piece of pancetta. Crush and peel the garlic up. Put the garlic in a small saute pan with the extra virgin olive oil and saute until it turns deep gold. Remove the garlic from the pan and put in the strips of pancetta. Cook them until they begin to crisp on the edges. Add the wine. Cook the wine down for 2 minutes.

Break the eggs into a pasta serving bowl, Beat them lightly with a fork. Then add the Romano, Parmigiano-Reggiano, pepper and parsley. Mix thoroughly.

Add drained, hot pasta to the bowl and toss rapidly to coat the strands well. Add the pancetta and wine. Toss again and serve immediately.

Personal Note: I also like this pasta dish a lot. I don't know that the following food folklore is true, but I've been told this dish originated during World War II when GIs were in Italy with their rations of eggs and bacon. They asked locals what they should do with it to make it tasty and apparently the answer was Pasta Carbonara. It's like breakfast pasta. Yum. And don't be afraid of the raw egg thing--as long as you've got the pasta you're adding to it very hot as well as the hot pancetta cooked in oil, and the egg has been beat sufficiently, the heat is enough to cook the egg just right. Again, yum.