Starches and Carbs! Yummmm!

So I may have used the wrong kind of pasta for Carbonara... but that's okay! First off we poached an egg which was pretty cool. Then we sweat an ounce of pancetta in a small saute pan (probably a little more than an ounce....pancetta is good..) We drained some of the fat out, poured in 1/4 of a cup of heavy cream to a simmer and seasoned with some salt and pepper.

Then we tossed about 4 ounces of al dente pasta into the sauce pan and topped it with a tablespoon of chopped parsley. We served the pasta with the poached egg and ta-da! That was the pasta dish. The egg was really creamy and it was such a good dish.

The garlic mashed potatoes were pretty good too. I'm always a sucker for potato dishes. My lab partner for the day peeled about a pound and a half of all purpose potatoes, and simmered them in salted water and 3 or 4 cloves of garlic until they were tender. We let them cool and threw them in a mixer with the paddle attachment until it was broken up really well. Then we switched to the whisk attachment and pureed it. We added an ounce of butter, the 1/4 cup of light cream to get the consistency just right. We also added about a head of roasted garlic to the mix too just to add some more flavor. Then salt and pepper to taste. It was so good. I'm a fan of garlic too so that was just a plus.