Creamy Pine Nut Penne
with Parmesan Cheese & Bacon
This classic cream-based pasta dish is easy to make and easy to love. The trick to Italian cuisine is always its ingenious simplicity, and this use of penne is a great example. It’s the perfect shape and size to capture all that lovely sauce, and it’s easy for kids to gobble up, too!
The quantities provided above are averages only.
Produced in a facility that processes eggs, milk, fish, peanuts, sesame, shellfish, soy, tree nuts and wheat.
Ingredients
1 clove
garlic
1 packet
bacon
⅘ packet
penne
(Contains: Gluten, Wheat; May be present: Eggs, Soy, Milk.)
1 packet
green beans
1 tub
cooking cream
(Contains: Milk;)
1 bag
baby spinach leaves
1 block
Parmesan cheese
(Contains: Milk;)
1 bunch
basil
1 packet
pine nuts
(Contains: Pine Nut; May be present: Soy, Milk, Peanuts, Sesame, Almond, Brazil nut, Cashew, Macadamia, Pecan, Pistachio, Walnut, Hazelnut.)
Not included in your delivery
olive oil
Utensils
Cooking Steps
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Chop the bacon into 2 cm pieces. Trim the ends of the green beans and chop into 2 cm lengths. Peel and crush the garlic. Pick and roughly chop the basil leaves. Finely grate the Parmesan cheese.
Heat a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the pine nuts and toast, stirring, for 3-4 minutes, or until golden. TIP: Watch they don’t burn! Remove from the heat and set aside in a small bowl.
Add the penne (use suggested amount) to the saucepan of boiling water and cook for 10 minutes, or until ‘al dente’. Note: Be sure to add the correct amount of pasta so your dish is perfectly balanced, just the way we planned it! Reserve 1/4 cup of pasta water and set aside. Place the baby spinach leaves in the base of a colander and drain the pasta over the spinach. Return the pasta and spinach to the saucepan and cover to keep warm.
While the pasta is cooking, return the pan to a medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil and the baconand cook for 4-5 minutes, or until browned. Add the garlic and green beans and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until softened and fragrant.
Slowly add the cooking cream, a pinch of salt and 2 tbs of the reserved pasta water to the pan with the bacon. TIP: Adding starchy pasta water helps the creamy sauce bind to the pasta. Stir to combine. Simmer the sauce for 2-3 minutes, or until it thickens slightly. TIP: Add the remaining reserved pasta water if you'd like it more saucy. Pour the creamy sauce into the saucepan with the pasta and spinach and add 1/2 of the basil (reserve the remaining for the garnish). Stir to combine.
Divide the creamy penne between bowls. Top with the grated Parmesan cheese, toasted pine nuts and the remaining basil.
