Sunday, May 6, 2012

Lemongrass carbonera with radish, carrots, and pea leaves

Ah school is almost over!!! Meanwhile, the food and science class at UCLA has given a lot of inspiration and wayyyy expanded my cooking creations. I have been going to the farmer's market more often :). Good thing LA has so many farmer's markets.

Here's something I came up with after going to the farmer's market in Santa Monica.

Lemongrass carbonera with radish, carrots, and pea leaves


















Ingredients
A batch of spaghetti (1 inch diameter)
1 cup Heavy cream
1 stalk Lemongrass
1 tsp Soy sauce
2 egg yolks
3 cloves Garlic
2 Carrots
1 Radish
1 Green onion
1 small bunch of Pea leaves with flowers
1 cm Butter
1 tbs Olive oil
Parmesan cheese

Prep lemongrass cream (can be done a day beforehand)

1. Peel outer layer of lemon grass
2. Cut lemon grass into little pieces
3. Heat up heavy cream until simmering.
4.Add lemongrass and let it simmer for 10 minutes and stir constantly not to let the cream burn.
5. Add soy sauce and stir.
6. Let it cool and let the lemongrass sit to infuse more flavor (I let it sit in the fridge for a day).

Prep work for main
1. Get water boiling. 
2. Cut carrots into as seen in picture.
3. Slice the radish into paper thin.
4. Slice the green onion.
5. Mince the garlic.
6. Trim the pea leaves to get rid of the thicker stalks.
7. When cream is cooled, add egg yolk and stir with the cream.
8. Blanch pea leaves in the boiling water or until the stalk is soft.
9. Leave pea leaves to dry

Instructions for cooking
1. Boil water
2. Add pasta
3. In a pan, add half butter and set for medium heat.
4. Throw in carrots and cook until semi soft.
5. Add radishes and cook until it still has a little crunch in it.
6. Add in blanched pea leaves and the rest of the butter.
7. Set aside in a warm place.
8. Remove pasta from water.
9. Add olive oil to a pan on medium heat.
10. Add pasta and garlic and stir until aroma of garlic comes out.
11. Turn off the heat and add cream and egg mixture.
12. Stir around so that the egg does not cook.
13. Add salt and pepper.
14. Plate as above and add cheese to the noodles.