A big bowl of pasta mixed with yummy bacon, egg and cheese is what Spaghetti alla Carbonara is all about! A dish of comfort all the way! Creamy without adding cream, hearty without being too heavy, and quickly made in under 30 minutes for any night of the week.
What's not to love about this dish? Oh right...... the calories and fat typically. But when made at home you can have this bowl of comfort without ruining your weight loss plans.
I've eaten this throughout my childhood at least once a week. It's a super easy meal to prepare with ingredients usually on hand in most homes. Of course I didn't eat turkey bacon as a child, it was regular bacon, but that's just one way I've modified this childhood favorite so it can be enjoyed without the guilt!
Fresh parsley and basil is a must in this recipe, not only for the pretty color but the true authentic Italian experience. Surprisingly I have an Italian friend who never ate this favorite of mine in her home growing up, but that doesn't have to stop you if you've never tried it. It may sound a little odd to throw eggs and bacon into spaghetti, but trust me , it works and it works well!
My entire family loves this dish, even the picky hubby who typically hates turkey bacon! You could certainly make this without the ground chicken but I added it in to make the dish a bit more hearty and filling.
Just a few facts about typical carbonara for you...........
According to the LiveStrong website, "Cheesecake Factory's Pasta Carbonara with Chicken one of the unhealthiest restaurant meals in America. The dish has nearly 2,500 calories -- many more calories than most people need to eat in an entire day -- and 85g of artery-clogging saturated fat. The Olive Garden's Chicken & Shrimp Carbonara is high in calories, sodium and fat, totaling 1,440 calories, 3,000mg of sodium, 88g of total fat and 38g of saturated fat." Read more: https://www.livestrong.com/article/355273-pasta-carbonara-nutrition/#ixzz2LxARUMmi
So with that being said, my nutrition info is below, calculated from nutritiondata.com. I'm pretty happy with my version even if it is still an indulgent dish, it is certainly better than ordering it out at a restaurant don't you think?
Lightened Up Spaghetti alla Carbonara with Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 pound brown rice spaghetti I used Tinkyada
- 2 teaspoon olive oil
- 6 ounces nitrate free bacon or turkey bacon, chopped
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 pound raw ground chicken
- ½ cup grated Parmesan
- 3 eggs plus 1 yolk beaten
- 2 cups reserved pasta water
- ¼ cup fresh chopped basil
- ¼ cup fresh chopped parsley
- 1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
Instructions
- Bring 6 quarts of water to a boil then add 1 tablespoon salt.
- Add spaghetti and cook until done to your liking.
- While spaghetti is cooking, add the oil and turkey bacon to a large skillet on medium heat.
- Cook until bacon is crisp and remove to drain on paper towels.
- Add garlic and ground chicken to the same skillet and cook until chicken is browned, keep on low heat.
- Once spaghetti is cooked, drain, but reserve 2 cups of the water.
- Transfer hot spaghetti to skillet with chicken.
- Add bacon and immediately add beaten eggs to pasta.
- Stir and combine well on low heat.
- Add Parmesan cheese and 1 cup reserved pasta water to skillet. (If mixture is too thick add more pasta water.)
- Toss in basil, parsley and lemon zest.
Notes
Nutrition
About Brenda
Brenda Bennett is a certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, certified Sugar Detox Coach, certified Keto Coach and certified Life Coach. She has been Sugar Free & Refined carb free for 17 years and has written 2 cookbooks, Sugar-Free Mom, and Naturally Keto and her 3rd book The 30-Day Sugar Elimination Diet, is a four part program to help you detox from sugar, eliminate cravings, balance blood sugar and lose weight all while eating a delicious, nutrient dense whole foods. Meal plan offers two tracks to follow, low carb or keto. She is the founder of the Sugar Free Fresh Start course and Sugar Free Tribe weight loss membership. Learn more.
Gretchen
I am wondering if the pasta can be substituted with spaghetti squash?
Brenda
It probably could although I'm not sure if the beaten eggs will stick to the squash as it does with pasta, but it's worth a shot. Let me know how it works for you.
Gretchen
I will thanks! Probably be next weekend before I try it. I try to use spaghetti squash in place of pasta where I can.....much lower in carbs.
Lindsay
This was really delicious! I made the chicken in a slow cooker with the garlic so I was able to cut out all the oil needed! I also made it with corn pasta, and no cheese, and after adding everything up it was only 348 calories for a serving, and super filling! Plus I have celiac disease so I love that this recipe was gluten free! Thanks!
Brenda
great idea with the chicken!
Allison
What is the serving size for this dish? About 1 cup?
Brenda
2 ounces of dry pasta yields about a cup cooked and a pound is 16 ounces, but with the other ingredients in the pasta I would say more like 1 1/4 cup each or even 1 1/2 cups. You could make the entire dish as I did in the large bowl and measure out the total then divide by 8. I just eyeballed this one since my family was hungry and was anxious to eat it LOL!