Access’ Natalie Morales Shares Recipes From Her Cookbook, ‘At Home With Natalie: Simple Recipes for Healthy Living’

Access’ own Natalie Morales shares some of her recipes from her upcoming cookbook, “At Home with Natalie: Simple Recipes for Healthy Living from My Family’s Kitchen to Yours.” The book is out April 17, but is available now for pre-order at AmazonBarnes & Noble, and IndieBound.

WHOLE WHEAT SPAGHETTI CARBONARA WITH PEAS AND PANCETTA

THIS IS ONE OF OUR FAVORITE PASTA DISHES. It is so flavorful and easy to make that I make it in front of friends to impress them. You can use regular spaghetti, of course, but I like the nuttiness of whole wheat, and it’s a bit healthier, too. From beginning to end, this spaghetti carbonara takes less than 30 minutes, so be ready to eat it right away, as it’s best right out of the pan and onto your plate!

SERVES 4

12 ounces whole wheat spaghetti (3/4 box)

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 cup chopped pancetta

1 large shallot, minced (about 3 tablespoons)

2 large eggs, room temperature

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup fresh or frozen green peas

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Line a plate with paper towels. Warm your serving bowl(s) in a low oven.

2.  Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to the package directions to al dente.

3. As the pasta is cooking, in a nonstick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the pancetta and shallot and cook, stirring, until the pancetta has just become crispy and lightly browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Spoon the pancetta and shallot onto the paper towel–lined plate and set aside any rendered fat in a small bowl.

4. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs with 3 tablespoons of the Parmesan. In a stream, whisking vigorously, add the rendered pancetta fat to the eggs.

5. When about a minute remains until the pasta is cooked, add the peas to the pasta water to heat them. Then reserve 1 cup of the pasta water for the sauce and drain the pasta and peas in
a colander.

6. In the same pot you made the pasta, but off the burner so you don’t cook the eggs, dump the spaghetti and peas back into the pot, then add the egg mixture, pancetta, and shallot. Toss continuously to prevent the eggs from clumping. Add the reserved pasta water, bit by bit as needed, to achieve a creamier texture. Season with salt and pepper.

7. Serve immediately, topping each warm bowl with a healthy spoonful of the remaining Parmesan.

Natalie Morales Cookbook Spaghetti
Spaghetti Carbonara With Peas and Pancetta from Natalie Morales’ cookbook, “At Home with Natalie: Simple Recipes for Healthy Living from My Family’s Kitchen to Yours.”

HORIATIKI (CLASSIC GREEK SALAD)

GLUTEN FREE & VEGETARIAN

SERVES 4

DRESSING

1/2 cup
extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 cup
fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon
red wine vinegar

1 garlic
clove, pressed

1 teaspoon
minced fresh oregano, or ¼ teaspoon dried

1 teaspoon
minced fresh dill, or ¼ teaspoon dried

1 tablespoon
finely crumbled feta cheese

1 tablespoon
minced Kalamata olives

Salt and
freshly ground black pepper

SALAD

4 large ripe
heirloom or plum tomatoes, cored and chopped into chunks

1 medium
head romaine lettuce, cut into bite-size pieces

1 medium
cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped into chunks

1 green bell
pepper, chopped into chunks

1/2 red
onion, very thinly sliced

1/2 cup
coarsely chopped Kalamata or black olives

1/2 cup
crumbled feta cheese

1. Make the dressing: In a
small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, garlic,
oregano, and dill. Stir in the feta and olives and season with salt and black
pepper. Set aside and only dress the salad right before serving.

2.  Make the salad:
In a large salad bowl, toss together the tomatoes, romaine, cucumber, bell
pepper, onion, and olives.

3.  When ready to serve, top
with the feta cheese, drizzle in the dressing, and toss well.

Greek Salad
Try out this Greek Salad from Natalie Morales’ new cookbook, “At Home with Natalie: Simple Recipes for Healthy Living from My Family’s Kitchen to Yours.”

BASIC FLAN

GLUTEN-FREE AND VEGETARIAN

SERVES 8

6 large eggs

1 (12-ounce)
can low-fat evaporated milk

1 (14-ounce)
can low-fat or fat-free sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon
pure vanilla extract

¾ cup sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Fill a roasting pan one-quarter of the way with water and set it in the oven.

2.  In a blender, combine
the eggs, evaporated and condensed milks, and vanilla. Blend until smooth and
set aside.

3.  Scoop the sugar into a
small saucepan. Over very low heat, slowly caramelize the sugar. This is the
hardest part of the recipe because the key is not to let the sugar burn or get
too dark. The pan can be directly over the heat, but it gets very, very hot, so
use a potholder. Using a wooden spoon, work the sugar around the pan until it
starts to liquefy. Remove from the heat as soon as the sugar starts to turns a
light caramel color.

4. Immediately pour the
caramelized sugar into a round glass baking dish, such as a 9-inch Pyrex pie
dish. Tilt the dish to coat the bottom and sides with the caramel.

5. Pour the custard mixture into
the caramel-coated dish. Place it in the water-filled roasting pan in the oven.

6. Bake for about 45 minutes, but
as ovens can vary, start checking for doneness after 30 minutes. The flan is
cooked through when the top pulls from the sides of the baking dish a bit or
when the top is firm and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

7. Remove from the oven and set
aside to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

8. To serve, take a large dessert
platter and place it over the baking dish as if it were a lid. Do this over the
sink to ensure no spillage. Quickly flip the pan and the platter together. The
flan should come out of the baking dish perfectly, topped with a beautiful
caramel.

Natalie Morales Cookbook Basic Flan
Basic Flan from Natalie Morales’ cookbook, “At Home with Natalie: Simple Recipes for Healthy Living from My Family’s Kitchen to Yours.”

All recipes
from AT HOME WITH NATALIE by NATALIE MORALES. Copyright 2018 by NATALIE
MORALES. Used by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2024 by NBC Universal, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

This material may not be republished, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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