Carbonara is one of my absolute favorite dishes of all time, and dang it, it deserves to shine outside the realm of pasta. Since carbonara naturally lends itself to breakfast, with all it’s eggy, cheesy, porky glory, and because, let’s be honest, I just want to wake up to carbonara, I created this incredibly delicious carbonara breakfast sammy with luscious carbonara cream, crispy pancetta, and a pepper and chive souffléd egg. It’s decadent, it’s got almost 40 grams of protein per sandwich, and for lack of a better word, it’s just eggcellent. Serve with a side of high fiber berries for a balanced, delicious breakfast that can really be enjoyed any time of day. Andiamo!
4thick slices pancettalevel 8 thickness at deli, about 1/2lb total
4burger buns
1tspspray oil
1/2ozparm
1/2ozpecorino
4egg yolks
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400°F and arrange a rack in the center.
Crisp the Pancetta. To a parchment-lined baking sheet with a cooling rack on top, add your thick sliced pancetta. Top with an additional inverted cooling rack to prevent the pancetta from curling up during cooking. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the fat has rendered and the pancetta is crispy, then remove, transfer the pancetta to a paper towel-lined plate, and reserve a tsp of the rendered pancetta fat. Set aside.
While the pancetta is cooking, make the Carbonara Cream. To a medium heat-resistant bowl, add all ingredients under Carbonara Cream and half of the milk and whisk till homogenous. Prepare a double boiler by choosing a small pot that your heat resistant-bowl fits into without descending more than halfway into the pot, then fill the pot with an inch or so of water, bring to a simmer, and set your bowl on top. Whisk/stir constantly until the mixture begins to noticeably thicken, about 5 minutes. This step will seem like nothing is happening for a little while, then thicken pretty quickly, so don’t lose focus! Once thick, remove from the heat, season with salt and continue whisking until the mixture has cooled a bit, another minute or so. You can also set the bowl inside an ice bath for faster cooling. Whisk in the remaining milk along with the reserved pancetta fat, then check for seasoning (add more salt if needed), and set aside.
Make the Souffle Eggies. Lower the heat on the oven to 300°F, bring some water to a boil for your water bath, and grease four 4" oven-safe ramekins or an 8×8 pan well with butter. To a large bowl, add the Greek yogurt, milk, pepper and some salt and whisk till creamy and smooth. Add the eggs and whisk till homogeneous, then whisk in the chives. Pour the egg mixture into the greased ramekins/pan, then set inside another, slightly larger dish and transfer to the oven. Pour the boiling water into the outer pan, so the water comes at least halfway up the eggs, and bake for 30 minutes, rotating the front of the pan towards the back halfway through for even cooking. Once done, transfer the egg pan to the countertop to finish cooling, then carefully remove, and if using the 8×8 pan, cut into 4 equal squares.
Toast the buns and assemble. To a skillet over medium high heat, spray with oil then add your bun halves cut-side down and gently press for maximum contact. Toast until golden brown, then repeat with the other buns. Assemble your sandwiches by smearing each bun halve with carbonara cream, then top the saucy bottom bun with a slice of crispy pancetta, a soufflé egg square, and 1/4 of the parm and pecorino. Then nestle an egg yolk in the center of your grated cheese, top with the saucy top bun and enjoy immediately!
Notes
If you manage to get little pieces of scrambled egg in your carbonara cream, that’s ok! You can really leave as is, or just pass through a fine mesh sieve to eliminate any lumps.
I'm a big eater, a huge fan of pasta (and mac n cheese), and I'm on a mission to prove that indulgence and balance can exist well together without silly restrictions or dieting. Life's too short to eat bad food!
