BLT Pasta

Months ago I received a free copy of Cuisine at Home magazine and it ended up buried under a stack of papers in our home office.  I'm a magazine queen and I have a stack of dog eared cooking magazines with recipes waiting to be scanned or filed.  I wasn't interested in another subscription.  When I finally got a chance to flip through it I ended up liking some of the recipes, including the BLT Pasta.  I know, it sounded weird to me too.  I like BLTs (without mayo) and I like pasta, but lettuce with spaghetti?  Fortunately, there is no lettuce in this recipe. 

My husband is pretty anti-vegetable.  He doesn't like peppers, onions, carrots, spinach... the list goes on and on.  I've been able to finely chop veggies and sneak them into his food, because I just can't cook without them.  He's been a good sport about eating healthier lately.  He will eat almost anything I cook, as long as the despised veggies are not clearly visible.  He ate this.  Either he was really hungry, or it was good.  I enjoyed the subtle sweetness of the tomatoes with the saltiness of the bacon.  I modified this recipe to work with my weekend leftovers:  a half pound of bacon, a pint of grape tomatoes, and a half bottle of dry Riesling.  I love the challenge of cooking from what is on hand.  The only ingredient I needed to purchase was the spinach.

This recipe is a modification of the original BLT Pasta.  My recipe yields two generous servings, which is perfect for my mini family.

BLT Pasta

1/2 lb. spaghetti
1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 sprigs time
1 t. red wine vinegar
1 t. sugar
1/2 t. crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 c. dry white wine
1/2 c. chicken stock
2 c. raw spinach
8 slices lean bacon




Cut the bacon into small pieces and cook it in a large, wide skillet.

Move cooked bacon to a paper towel to drain.  Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of grease.  Reduce heat to medium and add cherry tomatoes and sugar.  Sautee for five minutes, or until the tomates begin to release their liquid and break down.  Add the thyme leaves and chopped garlic to the tomates.  Add a little salt and pepper (to taste).

Add the white wine to deglaze the pan.  Be sure to scrape up all the yummy bits from the bottom.  Let the wine simmer on medium-low for 3-5 mintutes, until the wine is mostly evaoprated.  Start boiling the pasta.  You'll need to cook the pasta to an al dente texture.

Add the red wine vinegar, chicken broth, and crushed red pepper.  Turn heat to low.  Simmer the sauce until the pasta is ready.

Add the spinach to the pan of simmering sauce.

Use tongs to move the cooked pasta straight from the boiling water to the sauce pan.  Toss the pasta in the sauce, check for salt and pepper and top the completed dish with bacon.