Pasta with Bacon and Mushrooms

Need a good recipe? Head over to The Pioneer Woman's blog. Every single recipe I've tried from Ree's blog or her cookbook has been wonderful. I'm not one to buy cookbooks anymore. I have more recipes bookmarked on my computer than I could ever make in my lifetime. But when I saw that The Pioneer Woman had a cookbook, I ran right out to Books-a-Million and picked it up. For full price. (If you know me, that's a big deal. I never pay full price for anything!) It was sooo worth it. Beautiful pictures. Step-by-step instructions. Delicious food. What more do you want?

This recipe for Pasta with Bacon and Mushrooms was easy to throw together. In fact, it uses ingredients I keep on hand all the time. I didn't have a chance to stop at the store to pick up ingredients for my planned meal so I fixed this instead. Pasta in a creamy sauce with mushrooms (I used Baby Bellas) and bacon. Bacon makes everything taste better! Even the picky girls liked it. This is definitely my new go-to recipes.

I found this recipe through Joy in Cooking. Lisa tweaked the recipe a bit by adding some chicken cubes and spinach. (Love that idea!) I was feeding the picky girls so I didn't add the spinach (but I definitely will next time. Just didn't want tit to look to scary the first time. LOL!) I did add the chicken and it added a little heft to the meal. The girls got a little extra protein and dh was satisfied as well. Win-win.

Pasta with Mushrooms and Bacon
Recipe courtesy of The Pioneer Woman

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
3 slices Thin Bacon, Cut Into 1/2-inch Pieces
3 cloves Garlic, Minced
1 package (10 Ounce) White Button Mushrooms, Sliced Thin
1 cup Low Sodium Chicken Broth (OR Dry White Wine)
1 cup Half-and-half
¼ cups Heavy Whipping Cream
3 whole Green Onions, White And Light Green Parts Sliced
¼ cups Flat-leaf Parsley, Minced
½ cups Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
Salt To Taste
Freshly Ground Black Pepper, To Taste
1 pound Thin Spaghetti Or Angel Hair Pasta
Extra Parmesan, For Sprinkling

Preparation Instructions

Cook pasta according to package directions.
In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add bacon pieces and cook until light brown but not crisp. Remove bacon from pan and set aside. Do not clean pan.
Add mushrooms and garlic to pan. Toss/stir around and cook over medium-high heat for 5 minutes; increase heat to high if needed to help mushrooms begin to turn golden brown.
Pour in chicken broth. Stir, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen any bits. Cook over medium-high heat for several minutes, or until the liquid is reduced by half.
Reduce heat and pour in half and half and cream. Stir and allow to bubble and thicken for a couple of minutes. Add sliced green onions and parsley, then cook for one more minute. Finally, add Parmesan and stir, allowing cheese to melt and incorporate into the sauce. Turn off heat.
Add cooked pasta to a large bowl. Add half the sauce from the pan. Toss with tongs. ***Add 1/2 cup hot pasta water at this point if the pasta mixture is too thick and gunky. Toss and add more water until it reaches the consistency you need.***
Serve pasta in individual bowls, topping each helping with the rest of the sauce. Sprinkle with extra parsley and extra Parmesan.
Enjoy!