Pow-Pow Pasta

Dad Says:
This is a dish we made up because we had a lot of leftover sliced chorizo from a party the night before. For those of you who don’t know, chorizo is a cured Spanish sausage made from pork. It is exactly like Italian Sopressata but chorizo is made with a lot of paprika which makes it spicier.

We typically make Pasta with Garlic & Oil (a typical, easy Italian pasta dish) but we make it with a lot of red pepper flakes. When we decided to throw the chorizo in the dish it became REALLY spicy, so we decided to name it “Pow-Pow Pasta”…on account of the double whammy factor. After the first attempt we liked it so much we decided to make it again but really draw out the flavor of this delicious Spanish sausage. We added onion to the dish and cooked the chorizo low and slow in the oil along with the onion so we could render the fat and impart the spicy flavor of the chorizo throughout the entire dish. We also added one egg (beaten) to the dish, a lot like Pasta Carbonara; the secret to this is to add a few tbsp of the hot pasta water to the egg mixture to temper the eggs so they do not become scrambled eggs but rather make a silky coating throughout the dish. There are very few ingredients to this dish but it is a nice departure from the typical Italian food.

The other great thing about this dish is that Gia invented it with me. This made her more eager to try it because she had a hand in its creation. Getting your kids involved in cooking is a great way to expand their diet. Most kids won’t eat their veggies or a dish that does not look “chicken nugget-french fry” to them. But when they are able to help out it makes them happier and curious about the dish. There are lots of things I thought she would never eat, but when I allow her to help me she not only tries it but it ends up being something we can now add to our ever expanding menu. Let’s see what Gia says….

Gia says:
Let’s make Pow-Pow Pasta! It is a dish that Dad and I made up.
It has in it chorizo, tomato, onions, red pepper flakes, and a little bit of egg.
Dad told me about the egg and how you don’t want it scrambled or else the whole pot will be filled with scrambled egg, but the dish won’t taste like pasta it will taste like pasta with scrambled egg.
You need to beat it like it is any other egg. Then, instead of putting it in the pot, you take a little bit of hot pasta and put it in the bowl of eggs and the eggs heat up so when you put the egg mixture in the pot it wont become scrambled eggs. Now with the egg in there I think it makes the pasta taste really good.

RECIPE
Pow-Pow Pasta

Ingredients:
· 1 lb of Pasta (Rigatoni work best here)
· 1 large Onion; diced
· 3 cloves of Garlic; minced
· A 6 inch piece of Chorizo; large size dice
· ¼ cup fresh Parsley; chopped
· ½ tbsp Red Pepper Flakes
· ½ cup olive oil
· ½ cup of the pasta water reserved
· 1 egg; beaten
· ½ cup grated parmesan cheese

Method:
1. Cook the past until almost al dente (just before al dente).
2. While the pasta is cooking; in a large pot add the olive oil and chorizo and cook on a low flame to sweat the onions and render the chorizo.
3. After onions and chorizo are cooked; add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook for about 1 minute.
4. Beat the egg and add a few tbsp of the hot pasta water to temper the eggs. Add the parmesan cheese to the egg mixture.
5. Drain the pasta (reserve ½ cup of the pasta water); add the pasta, parsley and reserved pasta water to the chorizo mixture and toss to coat.
6. Shut the heat off (have a cover ready for the pot) and put the egg mixture in; stir thoroughly to combine, put the lid on and leave it for about a minute (the egg will now be cooked \ serve and eat).