Saturday LUNCH

Guy and I are not big "Brunchers." For both of us, it seems that brunch has changed, from a time for a leisurely meal, hopefully with friends, almost to a competitive sport. People try to find "the best" brunch in NY, or the one with "the best " mimosas, or something of that sort. And restaurants, to one extent or another, have responded, usually not favorably. In part, it's easy to understand why. Restaurants that we go to for dinner frequently, which will seat, say 80 people, speak of 3-400 covers at a brunch. There is no way that this can be a relaxing experience for anyone. And again, with price pressures, and the "all you can drink 8.95 brunch," anyone who expects that brunch is going to be good, has very low expectations. Chances are that mimosa with "fresh squeezed orange juice," is made with carton stuff. Or it WAS squeezed, but three days before. If you don't believe me, keep your eye on staff at a busy brunch spot. Eventually, you'll see a very harried bus boy or waiter, go running out and come back with a huge bag of cartons of orange juice. And the champagne is stuff you would never drink at any other time, but "hey, it's brunch."

In San Francisco, where "eating out is bloodsport," according to our friend Margey, a co owner of one of the best, and most underrated restaurant in that wonderful eating town, natives go home on Saturday afternoon, and eat LUNCH.

Yet another reason why I love that town. In the time that it takes to get to a brunch place, get seated, get served, eat, and get to somewhere else, you can have a very leisurely, delicious, wonderful meal at home. It isn't necessarily going to cost less, but who doesn't like a home cooked meal, especially in midday?

This afternoon, we had a wonderful, late lunch. Late, because we'll be out, and won't have dinner until about 11 o'clock, and wonderful, because of the ingredients, and how quickly it all came together.

The recipe follows. I guess it's a variation of one of the "creamy pastas," like alfredo, or ametriciana, or something like that. The quantities are approximate, you have to decide what you like. More bacon? More cream? More cheese? (In the spirit of excess, I'm not suggesting less). It's not something you will eat every week, unless you're 20 something, running marathons, and have exceptional genes, but once in a while, why not? It would also make a wonderful dinner, I think, balanced with a salad that will make you feel very good about yourself and how you didn't overdo all the bad things in the pasta.

A brief note on the way I cook the bacon. I got this from one of Martha Stewart's publications. Let me be clear: Ms. Stewart is not one of my favorite people. I find her insufferably smug on her show, and the stories about how she treats people who work for her company are horrible. But a cooking technique, does not really recognize who came up with it (IF in fact she did). I feel that way about a lot of "famous" chefs. Strip Emeril from his recipes, and they're wonderful. Strip Rachel Ray from hers and, well, they're ok. But you get my point. So here it is.

SPAGHETTI WITH BACON PARMAGIANA AND CREAM

To cook the bacon, preheat the oven to 400, and set up a baking sheet with a sheet of parchment paper, and an oven safe rack over it. Lay out the bacon, in single slices, not touching each other, on the rack. Bake this, in the oven for about twenty minutes, and then blot the bacon with some paper towel. Your home will not smell of bacon fat, the parchment paper will keep the rendered fat from burning, and when you pour the grease off of the sheet, you can smile and feel good about all the fat you avoided eating.

Break up that bacon and put it to the side, while you prepare the pasta. Get a big pot and fill it with hot water (why does everyone start pasta with cold water? There's no reason to, and you do save a few minutes). When it comes to the boil, add a tablespoon of salt and then add pasta (Even though the bacon and the cheese are salty, you have to get salt into the pasta itself, otherwise, it will be like going to McDonalds: lots of fat and salt, but no taste). In a pan next to the pasta pot, pour some cream. I love the cream from Ronnybrook dairy, but use what you like. And while the pasta is cooking, grate some really good parmesan cheese. Please don't use the stuff in the green cardboard box.

When the pasta is almost done, but not quite, drain it, and put it into the pan with the cream. Turn up the heat under the cream, and start turning the pasta in it. You'll see something almost miraculous happen. The cream will start thickening and coating the pasta, and you'll wonder what you did. All you did was heat the fat in the cream and change its properties. The cooking in the cream will finish off the pasta for you.

Throw in the bacon and stir it through and then, off the heat, stir in the parmesan.

And there you are. You have a wonderful, luxurious lunch. The kind that will make you say "OH GOD, I REALLY SHOULDN'T BE EATING THIS" as you take another bite of it. Only you need know you're only making it once a month , and if you have friends over when you do this, they don't need to know you're having steamed vegetables and seltzer for dinner.

And if they're really good friends, one of them will bring over a bottle of truly excellent champagne, and if s/he does, you don't need the orange juice.