Duck Proscuitto - Part 3

Happy Friday!  What a week it's been over here.  There was a super early morning, a few late nights and a lot of time spent in the kitchen this week.  This has sort of been the theme over here the past few weeks, so you'd think I'd be used to it by now.  One of the highlights of my week is finally getting to share with you the third, and final, part of my series on duck proscuitto!  If you remember a couple weeks back I got my hands on some delicious duck proscuitto.  I thought long & hard about what to do with it, and decided to incorporate it into a 3-course meal.  I started off with a slices of baguette topped with fig chutney & sliced duck proscuitto for an hors d'ouevre, then moved on to 2 variations of salad with duck proscuitto, and finally we arrive at the entree.

When I started out with this project I hoped to share all 3 courses back to back over the course of 1 week.  Unfortunately life took a turn for the busy and my plan didn't seem quite so feasible.  So, my new plan became spreading the series over 3 weeks, and posting one course each week.  Mission accomplished!  I had a lot of fun doing this series, and I definitely plan to do more of these going forward.  If you have any specific foods, items, themes, etc you want to see featured, I'm open to any and all suggestions and I'd love to hear from you!

Of the 3 courses, this one was hands down my favorite!  Before even starting to make this I knew it would be good, but turned out even better than I expected or hoped.  Absolutely amazing!  I love the way the eggs, cheese, and tiny bit of pasta water all blend together to create such a rich, creamy sauce.  

If you can't get your hands on duck proscuitto, no problem.  You can just as easily make this with regular sliced proscuitto.  When rendering the meat, you're not going to get nearly as much fat as you would with the duck, so add 1-2 tablespoons of oil to the pan.  The duck proscuitto is also quite salty, so go easy on the additional salt.  

Print Recipe

Pasta Carbonara with Duck Proscuitto

Serves 2

1/2 pound fusilli pasta

duck proscuitto, thinly sliced

1 shallot, finely minced

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

1/2 cup pasta water

1/2 cup Pecorino-Romano cheese

3 eggs yolks

salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

Boil water and cook past until al dente.  Drain the pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta water.

Meanwhile, in a large saute pan over medium heat, cook the duck proscuitto until the fat has been rendered, about 5 minutes.  Add the shallot & garlic and cook for a minute more.

In a small bowl whisk together egg yolks, cheese, salt & pepper.  Mix well so there aren't any lumps.

Add the reserved pasta water to the pan, and stir so the mixture is well blended.  Cook about  minute.  Add pasta to the pan, and toss to fully coat.  Remove the pan from the heat.  Add the egg mixture to the pan.  Toss pasta quickly to combine, so that the eggs thicken but don't scramble.  Season to taste. 

Top your plate with chopped parsley and grated cheese.

Enjoy!