Too Much Pancetta – Not the Worst Dilemma

A few weeks ago I sent Bret to the deli to pick-up some last minute items I needed for a weekend away with the ladies. On the list were 12 thin slices of pancetta. I knew when I saw him come in the door with a box rather than a small deli bag that something had gone awry. This being the same man who once brought home a can of frozen orange juice when the list said “Organic Fresh Apple Juice,” I couldn’t very well take it back and say it was their mistake. And among the mistakes a man can make, bringing home 4 pounds (and $40 worth) of pancetta – cut quite thick I may add – isn’t the worst one. It has forced me to find ways to add pancetta to any and everything (oh the horror).

Pancetta makes everything betta...

Here are two of my favorite recent uses. One is a great side dish for soup or a nice appetizer. The next is a yummy breakfast dish that can be put together in about 10 minutes the night before:

Asparagus-Parmesan Tart
Adapted from a recipe in Martha Stewart’s latest cookbook, Dinner at Home

1 sheet (14 oz) frozen puff pastry thawed
All-purpose flour for dusting
1 large egg, well beaten
10 medium asparagus spears, tough ends trimmed, shaved into thin strips using a vegetable peeler
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
**3-4 semi-thick slices Pancetta cooked to a crisp and broken into small pieces
1/2 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roll out dough on a lightly floured work surface to smooth creases. Lightly score a 1/2 inch border around dough. Brush off excess flour and transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet. Freeze 15 minutes.

Brush border of dough with beaten egg. Bake until puffed and starting to brown, 10-12 minutes. Toss asparagus with oil, and season with salt and pepper.

Remove tart shell from oven and press down on the center with a spatula. Arrange asparagus on top. Sprinkle pancetta over the asparagus. Bake until asparagus is crisp-tender, about 8 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle cheese evenly on top. Bake until cheese is melted, about 4 minutes more. Let cool on a wire rack 5 minutes before slicing and devouring.
**the pancetta was my add…in case that wasn’t abundantly obvious

Peach & Pancetta Strata
This one’s mine.

5 large eggs
2.5 cups whole milk
pinch of kosher salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 loaf day-old Challa** bread haphazardly torn into bite size’ish pieces
3 cups frozen peaches
3-4 semi-thick cut slices pancetta cooked crispy and crumbled

Butter a 9×11 casserole dish. In a bowl whisk 5 eggs. Add milk, salt, cinnamon, syrup, & brown sugar. Toss 1/3 of the bread pieces in the bottom of the casserole top with 1/3 of the egg/milk mixture. Layer one cup of the peaches. Sprinkle with 1/3 pancetta. Repeat two more times. Press down on the mixture in the casserole with squeaky clean hands. Refrigerate over night. (your part is done)

An hour before you want breakfast the next morning wake husband and tell him you heard something odd in the kitchen. Then tell him as long as he’s in there he should preheat the oven to 350 degrees. After you hear the oven beep that the temp is ideal tell your husband that you heard the sound again and that you are very very frightened and would like him to check things out. As long as he’s up he should put the strata in the oven. Set your alarm for exactly 50 minutes. Take the strata out of the oven and let it set for 10-15 minutes. Serve it with butter and syrup and a little extra coffee for the husband.

**it’s especially annoying to the teens in the house if you consistently say “Holla” like the girls on MTV do when referring to the Challa bread.

Tagged as: appetizer, breakfast, challa, husband, martha, my recipes, pancetta, peaches