Penne Alfredo with Bacon and Sun Dried Tomato
A delicious twist on the classic Alfredo. Penne Alfredo with Bacon and Sun Dried Tomato will change your 'go to' quick dinner forever!
Servings: 4
Cost: £2 / $2.50
Equipment
- Large Frying Pan & Wooden Spoon
- Large Pot & Colander
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
- Fine Cheese Grater
- Mug/Cup (for scooping pasta water)
Ingredients
- 10.5oz / 300g Penne Pasta
- 1 1/4 cups / 300ml Heavy/Double Cream, at room temp
- 3/4 cup / 100g Sun Dried Tomatoes, sliced
- 5oz / 150g Streaky Bacon, chopped
- 1/2 cup / 40g freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra to serve if desired
- 2 tbsp Unsalted Butter
- 1 tsp Garlic, minced (~1 large clove of garlic)
- 1/2 small bunch of Fresh Basil, finely diced (1/2oz/15g)
- Salt & Black Pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Add the bacon to a large pan over medium heat and fry until crisp with the fat rendered down. Drain away fat if there is excess (a tsp or so is fine, just eyeball it).
- At this point pop the pasta in a pot of salted boiling water and cook until al dente. Retain a cup of starchy pasta water just before draining.
- Add the garlic and sun-dried tomatoes to the bacon and fry for a minute or so, just before the garlic begins to pick up colour. Add the butter and stir until melted.
- Stir in the cream and allow to simmer on low-medium heat for 5 or so minutes until it starts to thicken. Stir in the parmesan, basil and seasoning to taste (go easy on the salt, may already be salty enough). The sauce should be fairly thick at this point.
- Stir in the cooked pasta alongside a splash of the starchy pasta water. Continue to toss until the sauce thickens around the pasta and clings to it, thinning out with more pasta water if needed. If you go overboard with the water, just continue to gently simmer & stir until the sauce wraps itself around the pasta.
- Serve with an extra sprinkle of parmesan if desired.
Video
Notes
a) Salt - Whilst black pepper is encouraged, start on the side of caution when seasoning with salt. The bacon, sun dried tomato and parmesan are all fairly salty ingredients, so you may not find you need extra in the sauce.
b) Pasta Water - The sauce gets fairly thick in a short space of time; adding a few splashes of water will help thin the sauce out again. The starch in the pasta water will also help bind the fats and help turn the sauce nice and creamy/glossy. Make sure the pasta water is seasoned and scooped out just before draining so it's as starchy as possible.
c) Leftovers - I have actually had readers tell me that they have reheated this recipe and tastes glorious. However in my experience, with the recipe and most creamy pasta dishes, when it's reheated it ends up very oily. Same great flavours, just none of the original creamy texture. I'll leave leftovers (if there is any) to your best judgement!
d) Readers notes - Although I have never tried myself, it sounds that grilled chicken and spinach are great additions to this recipe!
e) Calories - whole recipe divided by 4 with no extra parmesan to serve.
Nutrition
Calories: 615kcal | Carbohydrates: 30.09g | Protein: 15.66g | Fat: 49.35g | Saturated Fat: 21.441g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.786g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10.021g | Trans Fat: 0.233g | Cholesterol: 150mg | Sodium: 398mg | Potassium: 680mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6.35g | Vitamin A: 3700IU | Vitamin C: 6.6mg | Calcium: 160mg | Iron: 2.7mg