Easter, unorthodox.

Happy day after Easter! A lot of holidays have traditional food, and Easter is no exception: egg dishes at brunch, ham or lamb for dinner, more chocolate eggs and bunnies than other food groups.... This year I decided to put a fun twist on the usual dishes with a subtle nod to eggs in the basket (spaghetti alla carbonara), and a different take on the crown roast (garlic-rosemary lamb sausage with balsamic-roasted brussel sprouts).

Carbonara, while simple in ingredients, can be tricky. Leave the egg still for a moment and you've got scrambled eggs and noodles (I've hidden it in the photo here, but you can see I've got a very slight scramble among the creamy egg and cheese mixture -- no matter, practice makes perfect!). The recipe I used says to leave the heat on while you toss the noodles, but from everything I've heard before, the noodles keep enough heat to cook the egg thoroughly. Also, be sure your pan is small enough to toss the noodles without the egg touching much pan surface.

Arrange the noodles in a "nest" to make a basket of -- hopefully not scrambled -- eggs. I roasted halved brussel sprouts with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper for about 35 minutes at 425°F, then drizzled them with more balsamic. The roasted balsamic caramelizes and becomes sweet, and the final dash of vinegar cuts the lamb sausage richness perfectly.

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Spaghetti alla Carbonara

(serves two)

2 T olive oil
1/4 lb pancetta, cut into 1/4" dice
1/4 lb spaghetti
4 large eggs
1/4 c grated Parmesan
1/4 c grated pecorino
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 scallions, thinly sliced at an angle

Cook spaghetti a minute less than package instructions. Try to time it so the pasta is ready as everything else is ready to be combined (otherwise, leave the spaghetti in the water and turn off the heat).

Meanwhile, heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the pancetta a medium heat and cook until it starts to color and become crisp. Turn off the heat and reserve.

While the pasta is cooking, crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl. Add the grated cheeses and season with salt. Whisk vigorously, and season generously with black pepper.

When the pasta is just about done, remove from the cooking water and toss or stir into the pancetta to coat with the remaining fat in the skillet. Immediately vigorously stir the egg mixture into the pasta. Toss for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly until the egg mixture looks like a cream sauce.

Garnish with scallions and serve immediately.