Creamy Pasta with Asparagus and Bacon

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 30

Wrapped in a creamy sauce and packed with asparagus, crispy bacon, and mushrooms. This one-pot pasta dish is the perfect easy weeknight dinner you can make any time in less than 1 hour!

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Servings

Ingredients

5.3 ounces/150 grams of Bacon diced
12.3 ounces/350 grams Penne uncooked
5.3 ounces/150 grams Asparagus diced (woody ends removed)
1 c./250ml Heavy/Double Cream at room temp
1/2 c./40 grams freshly grated Parmesan
3 c./750ml Chicken Stock not piping hot! (plus 1/3 c./80ml reserved)
5.3 ounces/150 grams Mushrooms of choice sliced (I use Chestnut Mushrooms)
1 medium Onion finely diced
2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
2 tablespoons finely diced Fresh Parsley
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 cloves of Garlic finely diced/minced

Instructions

Fry the diced bacon in a large pot over medium heat until the fat completely renders and the bacon is crispy. In a bowl, transfer the bacon, but leave the bacon fat in the pot.
In the same pot, add 2 tbsp butter. Once melted, add the asparagus, mushrooms, and onion. Cook for a few minutes until starting to brown. Add the garlic and cook for a minute more.
Add the chicken stock and cream. Stir well before adding the uncooked pasta.
Adjust the heat to low and simmer until the pasta is al dente. Add enough extra stock (1/3 c. or 80ml) if the sauce soaks up before the pasta is cooked.
Return the bacon to the pot once the sauce has thickened and the pasta is cooked. Sprinkle in 2 tbsp finely diced parsley and half a cup of freshly grated Parmesan. Stir and serve.

Notes

To prevent curdling, use stock closer to room temperature instead of piping hot, and ensure the cream is at room temperature.

Make sure to give the pasta a good stir while cooking to help with the emulsion.

The perfect consistency is a sauce thick enough to stick to the pasta, not a saucy consistency. Add a couple of splashes of stock or water if the sauce thickened up before the pasta is cooked.

How To Make it Gluten-free:

Replace penne with gluten-free pasta such as barilla.

Audrey