BLT Pasta

This is a pasta dish that perhaps isn't my usual, due to it having bacon, but my mom said it was one of the best pastas she ever had!  So even though bacon in most dishes grosses me out (that stringy texture... ugh), read on.  Apparently the carnivores of Westminster approve!

It's a pretty great idea: BLT in pasta form, with garlic and Parmesan.  Since hot lettuce isn't the most appetizing thing on earth, you can use any leafy green you'd like (I used arugula, but you could do baby spinach).  There's a ton of flavor, from the bacon to the cheese to the sweet cherry tomatoes (which by the way get sautéed in bacon grease, soooo.....) .   Plus, you can eat it hot or cold; Mom ate it hot and raved about it, and I sent it to work with Mark a few times and he ate it cold.

The best part is how easy it is.  It's three steps, and one of them is just cooking the pasta.   So go make this.  Quickly, before all the tomatoes die in the first frost :(

Recipe:

BLT Pasta
from Annie's Eats
yields 6 - 8 servings

Ingredients:
1 pound pasta shapes, such as mini shells (I used cavatappi)
12 slices bacon, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
12 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
5 - 6 ounces leafy green, such as baby spinach or arugula
2 ounces grated Parmesan cheese (about 1 cup), plus more for serving
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1) Bring a large pot of water to boil.  Add the pasta and cook just until al dente according to the package directions.

2) Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a large nonstick or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until crisp, about 5 minutes.  Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.  Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon grease from the skillet.  Add the garlic and tomatoes to the pan and cook until the tomatoes are just slightly softened, about 2 minutes.

3) Drain the pasta, reserving 1 1/2 cups of the pasta water.  Return the drained pasta to the pot, along with the spinach, bacon, garlic-tomato mixture, 1 cup of the reserved pasta water and Parmesan.  Stir well until evenly combined and until the spinach is wilted.  Season to taste with salt and pepper and add remaining pasta water as needed.  Serve warm with additional grated Parmesan.