Butternut Squash Carbonara

Loooove me some carbonara. I love making this dish because it can be easily customized. Want it creamier? Add heavy whipping cream. Want to add in some fall flavors? Add some butternut squash or pumpkin puree. Want it to taste like cacio e pepe? Toast some peppercorns and toss em' in. Looking to add some greens? Arugula or spinach both work great mixed in. Want to give it an Asian flare? Miso paste is so amazing in it too! The options are endlessssss. 

A few carbonara tips I've learned over the years:
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• Grating cheese with a microplane (super thin) straight from a block works best. It melts easier and really just tastes way better than like that powdery kraft parmesan you can buy at the store.
• DO NOT combine the sauce mixture and the pasta over heat, like in a pot on the stove. Too much heat will make the eggs in the sauce scramble and what you'll get is basically pasta with scrambled eggs in it, lol. The worst.
• If you don't have pancetta, bacon will work. Try and get thicker sliced bacon if you can! If I'm working with bacon, I like to cut it into perfect little squares because it looks nicer that way!

What you need:

• 1/2 box long pasta - I prefer tagliatelle
• 1/2 cup diced pancetta or bacon or more if you want
• 2 egg yolks, one whole egg
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan or pecorino romano cheese
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 cup pureed butternut squash (or pumpkin if you want!)

What to do:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package instructions.
2. Start cooking the pancetta (or dice the bacon and start cooking that.) Once it's done transfer to a plate and let it chill until the pasta is done. Up to you whether or not you want to set it on a paper towel in order to transfer less or more of the flavorful grease from it - as long as there's not a ton of it you're good.
3. Meanwhile, combine the egg yolks, whole egg,  cheese, BNS puree and pepper in a large bowl. If you did not salt your pasta water you may need to add a pinch of salt here. There will be salt from the pancetta or bacon so you don't need a lot.
4. Drain the pasta and while it's still very hot - put it straight into the bowl with the sauce. This is *important* - use tongs to gently but also quickly toss the noodles over and over again in the sauce. The heat and movement spreads out the sauce and helps the raw eggs cook. (If you don't create that movement the eggs could scramble.)
5. Plate immediately and serve hot. Top each serving with more cheese and pepper.