Carbonara-Style Stuffed Onions
A Piedmontese-inspired dish with a carbonara twist!
Serves 4
4 onions
100 ml milk
150 g pancetta affumicata (smoked pancetta or smoked bacon), diced
600 ml liquid cream
50 g Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
50 g prosciutto cotto (cooked ham), finely chopped
2 eggs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Black truffle, finely diced (optional)
1. Place 50 g of the diced pancetta in a frying pan over medium-high heat and cook for a few minutes, allowing some of the fat to render.
2. Add 100 ml of milk and 100 ml of cream. Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat and leave to infuse until completely cool.
3. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a large bowl. Add the 2 eggs to the infused milk and cream, season with salt and pepper to taste, and whisk thoroughly.
4. Pour 50 ml of the mixture into each of four deep plates. Cook in a steam oven for 20 minutes, until the custard is just set. Remove and set aside.
5. Wrap each onion in aluminium foil and bake for 20 minutes at 200°C.
6. Remove the foil. Carefully slice off the top and base of each onion, then scoop out the centre, leaving one or two outer layers intact to form a shell. Reserve the tops and bases.
7. Roughly chop the scooped-out onion.
8. In a large pan, fry the remaining 100 g of diced pancetta together with the chopped onion. Add 500 ml of cream and the grated Parmigiano Reggiano. Cook gently for about 20 minutes.
9. Using a slotted spoon, remove the onion and pancetta from the pan and set aside. Continue cooking the cream until it has reduced and thickened.
10. Finely dice the cooked onion and return it to the reduced cream together with the pancetta and chopped prosciutto cotto. If desired, add a little finely diced black truffle. Mix well.
11. Assemble the stuffed onions: place one hollowed-out onion shell in the centre of each plate, on top of the steamed custard. Fill generously with the creamy onion, pancetta and ham mixture, then replace the top of the onion to serve.
