Bacon and Parmesan Penne Pasta Recipe

We liked this A LOT! The only thing I think next time is that I will cook the onions seperately from the bacon. They didn't burn or anything, they just got a little darker than I would have liked. I think I will even cook a few cloves of minced garlic w/ the onions too! I added some garlic powder, salt, pepper and parsley for a little extra flavor/color. This was really tasty! Thanks for sharing. :)

I followed some of the suggestions and those added some life to this basic recipe. Added fresh garlic to the onions and bacon as they fried up. then in the last two minutes, added quartered campari tomatoes. then added some Italian seasoning to the olive oil before I poured it over the pasta finally, someone mentioned a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and adding a drizzle of that over your plated pasta adds that extra flavor kick.

This recipe is a great base recipe, particularly because it uses very few ingredients that most everyone usually has on hand! I gave this recipe 3 stars because as written, the recipe is a little bland. I had to make a few simple adjustments to give this dish some flavor and the end result was appreciated! My adjustments were the following: *Cooked the bacon to a desired crispiness 1st and drained most of the bacon fat leaving about 1 TBLS in the pan and used 3/4 lb of the bacon (crumbled). *Satueed fresh sliced garlic (4 large cloves), 1/8 TSP red pepper flakes, 1 medium Vidalia onion (chopped fine), 1/2 TSP each dried parsley & dried basil in the bacon fat and broken up bacon pieces. *Added 1/4 cup white wine (Aldi's Winking Owl Pinot Grigio) to the bacon mixture in the pan. Cooked off the alcohol content. *Added 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken stock, the partially boiled spiral pasta (1/2 lb.) and 2 ladles of pasta water to the bacon mixture in the pan. *Finished boiling pasta in the pan until pasta was tender and liquid has thickened and partially reduced *Turned off the heat & sprinkled 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese on pasta and tossed to blend. **BOOM! Dinner Was Devoured!**

This is a great recipe with my modifications. I cooked bacon separately first in a skillet. Then I scooped cooked bacon out and sautéed onion and about 3 cloves minced fresh garlic in bacon drippings. I also added a can of diced Italian tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste to the cooked onion. Finally, after incorporating the pasta and onion mixture and olive oil, I sprinkled on some parsley and basil. Wonderful for some extra color and flavor. I will be making this dish again. Thank you SusieQ for sharing this recipe.

Not as flavorful as I was expecting. I did add 3 cloves of garlic and luckily had the forethought to add when almost done. The onion definitely cooked more than I would prefer, but on the plus side got a good caramelization to it, so not terrible. Don't think I'll be making again as I would prefer a bacon cream sauce as is more flavorful. Would recommend waiting to add the onion until the bacon has cooked halfway and then add garlic (if preferred) when almost done.

This recipe was easy and good. I really appreciate how easy it was to modify it and make it for only one serving. There just aren't enough meals built for one! I changed it up a bit so I feel bad reviewing it based on my method but here goes. I fried 2 slices of whole bacon first (so it could cool and I could crumble it more easily) and then sauteed the onion in the bacon fat. I added garlic powder, black pepper, and dried basil to the onions. After mixing it all together, I found the end result quite good. I often have leftover bacon and I always keep the other ingredients on hand, so I expect to cook this many times!

Such a yummy base recipe! My roommate and I stirred in peas and sundried tomatoes to up the nutritional value, but I could see this going well with broccoli, spinach, or even kale. For a little more zing, we sauteed a few cloves of garlic with the veggies and onion. We listened to SusieQ's advice and added a bit of bacon grease to the finished dish--boy, were we glad we did. Just a couple spoonfuls added tons of flavor. We'll definitely be making this again.

I love this recipe. I cooked the bacon and onions separately and sautéed the onions in some minced garlic, like it has been suggested. I threw in some black pepper and a few drops of tobacco sauce, which I found really elevates this dish. Also, I did not throw the Parmesan on it right before serving. Instead I threw it into the pot with the pasta and bacon mixture and let the cheese melt on the stove, so it was nice and gooey with each bite. Next time, I might also throw in some Asiago in addition to the Parmesan.

I used red onion, just a little, and cooked the bacon slowly with the onion, I used only 4 pieces of bacon. I added garlic salt. I really loved it, I added tomatoes to the top of mine, I think the longer it sits the better it tastes.

This is so super easy and I would give it 5 stars, but I think it’s better when you add some kind of acidic vegetable. I have used red or yellow bell peppers or tomato—both are great. I also like mushrooms in it. Garlic is an absolute MUST. I add around 5 cloves, but we really like garlic. With those additions, it would be 5-star.

1-12-2016 ~While I didn't measure and just chopped and cooked, I know I used far less bacon than called for. A pound of bacon for a pound of pasta for me was bacon overload. For the 1/4 pound of pasta I cooked for the two of us, two slices of bacon was just the right amount. I couldn't resist adding fresh minced garlic and it was a worthy addition. Once ready to serve it was clear it needed a fresh pop of color and some chopped fresh parsley did the trick. We really enjoyed this, and Hubs either didn't notice or didn't mind the Parmesan he has always made clear he dislikes! Note: Don't worry if you don't have penne pasta on hand. Just about any type of pasta will work! Tonight, for instance, I used orecchiette (little ears).

Amazing. Something cheap and quick too. Fed the whole house

It was great! I also added some garlic in with the onions and bacon mix.

Made my day, thank you!

Made it for a party — everyone raved.

Too much bacon!

this was great! I used spaghetti noodles instead and added some garlic and parsely. I garnished with sliced black olives.....YUMMERS!

This made for an excellent side dish. Added Romano cheese in addition to the Parmesan.

I love to make this dish for new moms. It is so delicious and comfort-style.

I added tomato, as well as fried mushroom. Loved it!! It’s a little bit bland without a proper sauce, but it’s great because you can add / subtract most of the ingredients & it’s something I can make for my little sisters when my parents are gone.