Pasta with Bacon and Cheese

This pasta with bacon and cheese recipe is so quick to prepare that you can make the sauce while the pasta simmers. It’s really tasty and only has a few simple ingredients. I prefer this to carbonara, or a pasta bake with bacon, both of which I find a bit too rich at times.

Making it a bacon, courgette and cheese pasta – rather than following traditional carbonara sauce recipes – helps to cut through that creamy richness that comes with carbonara or macaroni cheese. The vegetable provides a pleasant contrast, while using single rather than double cream to create a cheese sauce also makes for a lighter pasta dish.

I specify smoked bacon, but you can use unsmoked if you prefer – it makes only a subtle difference to the flavour. Bacon pasta like this is great for kids – you can also omit the garlic if it helps. It’s one of my favourite dinner recipes as it’s just so easy yet so delicious.

If tomato pasta is the usual go-to in your house, try this. You will not be disappointed once it’s made and eaten, so why not make it for dinner tonight? It is likely to be highly rated – even by the kids. Once I perfected this, I wondered why I always used to make pasta sauces with tomato rather than cream.

Serves 4

Pasta with Bacon and Cheese ingredients

• Smoked pancetta or streaky bacon, 1 pack (about 80-100g)
• Single cream, 250-300ml (or I use a pot of ‘Elmlea’, which is 284ml)
• Courgette, 1, sliced thinly then cut again into ‘half-moons’
• Garlic, 1 clove, crushed
• Cheddar cheese, 100g, grated
• Pasta, to serve (I used a 500g pack of penne)
• Freshly ground black pepper, to serve

Equipment

• Sharp knife
• Chopping board
• Medium saucepan (for pasta)
• Large frying pan (for sauce)
• Wooden spatula
• Cheese grater

How to make pasta with bacon and cheese

• First, cook the pasta. Water should be boiling hot when added, then heated until bubbling. Simmer for the time indicated on the pack instructions. You can make the sauce in the time it takes the pasta to cook.
• Cook the bacon or pancetta (without any oil, it will fry nicely in its own fat) for about three or four minutes over a medium heat, stirring, until it starts to brown. Add the cream and stir well, then the courgette, stir, then the garlic. Simmer the sauce gently over a low heat once you’ve added the cream and vegetables, stirring often to prevent sticking.
• When the pasta is cooked, add it to the sauce. Add the cheese and stir well. Serve immediately.
• I love to add a sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper.

Note

• If the sauce thickens too much during cooking, add a dash of milk to it.

Related recipes:

• Cheese & ham one pot pasta
• Pork spag bol
• Bacon & chicken pasta bake
• BBQ bacon fries
• Slow cooker meatballs

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