Ingredients
8 ounces dried penne pasta
3 T olive oil
1 slice bacon, cut into matchsticks across the shorter length of the strip
1 onion, thinly sliced
2 carrots, grated
1 zucchini, grated
1 t dried thyme
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups fresh spinach
¼ cup grated parmesan
2 T bread crumbs
Salt and pepper
Method
1. In a large sauté pan, cook bacon in olive oil until almost crisp, about five minutes. Add onion and cook until tender and translucent. Add the remaining vegetables and cook until tender, about five minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant.
2. Meanwhile, cook penne according to package directions, salting the water liberally. One minute before the pasta cooking time is done, add raw spinach to the pasta water and cook with the pasta for the final minutes. Remove ¾ cup of pasta water just before draining and set aside. Drain pasta and spinach and toss in pan with vegetables. Add pasta water as necessary to coat pasta so it doesn’t stick. In a small bowl, mix bread crumbs and parmesan, and sprinkle on top of pasta to serve.
Yield: 4 servings
Prep time: 20 minutes
Ease of preparation: Easy
Recipe courtesy of Melissa d’Arabian developed for the Grain Foods Foundation
