Rachel's Stinging Eye Pasta

Okay, so maybe this dish isn't really called the "stinging eye," but it sure as heck should be! This pasta uses 10 whole shallots - all sliced and diced by hand. My eyes are watering just thinking about it. I even lit a candle by the cutting board, which I'm pretty sure Martha Stewart told me was a surefire way to avoid any onion side effects. No good. It is times like this that make me really want one of those plastic chopper things that you see on late night infomercials. To make matters worst, Rachel says that getting one of those big shallots that is essentially two separate ones once you peel off the skin still only counts as one - cruel, cruel shallot. I will admit though, that in the end the shallots really do cook down to practically nothing (no matter how many "2-for-1" winners you get) and are completely necessary to flavor the heaping mound of pasta they are topped with.

The dish overall was easy to make, albeit painful, and was pretty tasty. It does not, however, taste like French Onion Soup, which Rachel attests to in the show. It's good, but it ain't French Onion Soup good. It's also made with a whole wheat pasta, which I normally hate as I know it's just a healthy replacement for delicious normal pasta. The whole wheat pasta tasted surprisingly good though - I even think it might be better than normal pasta (gasp!) in this particular dish. I'm not sure if the overall dish is necessarily healthy as there is quite a bit of butter and cheese involved, but at least we are getting some kind of nutritional upgrade with the WW pasta thing.

I made Rachel's broccoli rabe with sausage to accompany the pasta, just like she did in the show, and will tell ya'll about that little heap of sausage pretending to be healthy some time soon.

Rachel's Shallota Flavor Spaghetti
Adapted from 30 Minute Meals - Rachel Ray

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (or as Rachel would say "EVOO!")
2 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
10 shallots, thinly sliced
Salt and Pepper
1 pound whole-wheat spaghetti
Handful of chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

• Place a large pot of water over high heat to bring to a boil.
• Add the EVOO and butter to a large saute pan over medium-low heat.
• Add garlic, shallots and salt and pepper to taste and cook, occasionally giving the contents a little stir, until the onions begin to caramelize (approx. 20 minutes).
• When the shallots are about halfway done cooking, add salt to the pot of boiling water and add the pasta.
• Cook pasta according to package instructions (probably about 8-10 minutes).
• Add pasta to saute pan once done cooking, along with a ladle or 2 of the pasta water to help create a sauce, the cheese, parsley and additional black pepper if desired.
• Take off heat and combine well.