BLT Pasta

I've had this recipe hanging on my fridge for ages.  Yes, tons of cookbooks, Pinterest pins, and Cooking Light and Food Network Magazine subscriptions and I still rip out random recipes and stick them to the fridge.  Go figure. 

This BLT pasta has all of the yummy flavors of BLT minus the mayo which just happens to be my least favorite part anyway.  If you love mayo, I'd say this pasta is so flavorful, you might not even miss it.   If you really wanted to add mayo to the cold version of this salad, you'd probably have pasta salad.

The recipe itself is hardly complicated....boil pasta and chop veggies...but the end product is full of chewy pasta and bacon goodness.  Yep, there's tomatoes and spinach but really it's about the bacon right?

You start off with making some garlic breadcrumbs which is a perfect way to use up the last of that baguette you couldn't resist at the market.   Process until you have fine crumbs.

Heat oil and garlic in pan and then add breadcrumbs and toast. 

 Set aside and grab your other ingredients. Love the substitution of spinach for lettuce. 

I'd show you a photo of the bacon cooking but really, this is a more telling photo of what happens when bacon is cooking in this house.  Puppies need bacon.

Deglaze the pan with white wine before adding tomato paste, vinegar, stock and  a bit of red peppers.  I added quite a bit.

Turn off heat and toss in spinach and tomatoes and toss.  Pretend I mentioned earlier in the post that you should start your water and boil your pasta. 

Add the cooked pasta and crumbled bacon.  Toss and serve.  I threw some breadcrumbs in at this point but really they are best tossed on top of each individual dish of pasta. 

BLT Pasta

adapted from torn out newspaper recipe

Ingredients
1 clove garlic
1 cup french baguette cut into bread cubes
1 teaspoon olive oil
6 strips thick-sliced bacon
1 1/2 c diced tomatoes

2 c fresh spinach leaves
1/4 cup dry white wine

1 tsp red wine vinegar
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 tbsp tomato paste
spaghetti, linguine or any pasta really--cooked al dente

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook bucatini according to package instructions.
2. Mince garlic in a food processor. Add bread cubes, and process until you have crumbs. 
3. Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium; add crumbs and toast until golden, 3 to 4 minutes, stirring often. Season with salt and set aside.
4. Saute bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cook until crisp, then transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon bacon grease.
5. Deglaze skillet with wine; simmer until liquid is nearly evaporated. Add the broth, vinegar, tomato paste and red pepper flakes. Simmer until liquid is reduced by a third, about 5 minutes.
6. Add spinach, tomatoes and toss.
7. Transfer cooked pasta from cooking water to the skillet using tongs. Add crumbled bacon and toss to coat with sauce. Season with salt. 
8. Sprinkle with bread crumbs prior to serving.