Artichoke, Mushroom, & Pea Carbonara

Did someone say vegetarian carbonara? This take on a classic Italian pasta dish will fill your belly with savory joy - without the intense richness of the original. Start twirling that spaghetti!

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Carbonara is one of the best-known Italian pasta dishes, along with pomodoro, cacio e pepe, and some other select favorites. Typically, carbonara is a rich and creamy, with fat from rendered down pancetta (pork) as a base. Some mainstream carbonaras rely on heavy cream to add heft, but traditional carbonara actually uses just egg yolks to make the signature yellowy color and sticky, creamy texture - no cream needed. This recipe uses egg yolks in the traditional fashion and a little bit of oat milk and paprika to compensate for not using meat - you won't even miss it!

The key to this recipe is sauteeing the onions and mushrooms well until they get nicely browned, a bit jammy, and carry a rich flavor. The adage goes, 'don't crowd the mushrooms,' and that is true for getting nicely browned mushrooms (thank you, Julia Child). However, this can be time consuming and as long as you make sure to cook the mushrooms down until there is no water left releasing out and they are browning with the onions, the recipe will come out delicious. No individual mushroom flipping needed.

The order of operations matters here: onions should soften first to caramelize before the mushrooms go in. After the mushrooms and onions are browning (and are no longer wet), the artichokes can go in, to cook out some of their naturally briny flavor. Then peast can be added, so that they get tender but don't mush up.

After the veggies are ready, parmesan can be added, as well as the milk to get the sauce moist (since there is a dearth of animal fat). The pasta can cook simultaneously during these last steps so that you can add a little pasta water to the sauce and render it down.

Last, add the pasta to the sauce and the egg yolks follow, folded in gently off heat (but still hot) so they can cook slightly but not scramble. (If you go too far on your first time and you get a bit of scramble, it will still taste delicious, the texture will just move away from creamy.) Top with some more parmesan (don't be shy with it) and bellissima! Mangia, ragazzi!

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Prep Time: xx mins

Cook Time: xx mins

Serves: x

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil

1 lb spaghetti

1 large onion

8 ounces of portabello, baby bella, or button mushrooms

xx ounces of canned or jarred artichoke hearts, quartered preferred

xx ounces of frozen or fresh peas

1/2 cup plant-based or regular milk (oat milk used in this recipe)

2 egg yolks, large

Parmesan cheese, such as grana padano

salt

black pepper, to taste

Equipment

Large pasta pot

Instructions

xx