Bacon Rose Pasta Bake

We love a good pasta bake, it makes regular pasta just a bit cheesier and creamier with a slightly crunchy cheese crust. This bake has frozen fresh peas, bacon, 3 types of cheese and a deliciously creamy rose sauce, you could even say it`s our baked version of a Penne a la Vodka.

When making a pasta bake, one of the most important things to think about is the type of pasta you`re going to use. You want it to be on the larger and thicker side, so it doesn`t become too soft after being cooked twice. Penne`s larger cousin, the Rigatoni, is not only thicker but it can also hold a lot of the sauce in its middle, making it our favourite choice.

Start by pre-heating the oven to 425F and boiling a large pot of salted water.

Once the salted water is boiling, add 1 pack (1 lb) of good quality rigatoni and cook for 9 minutes. The pasta shouldn`t be fully cooked yet, it should be about 70% of the way in. Immediately strain, mix in 1 tablespoon of olive oil and reserve. The olive oil will keep them from sticking to each other while you make the sauce.

Small dice 1 Spanish onion, mince 3 cloves of garlic and roughly slice 6 strips of bacon. Thaw 1 cup of frozen peas in a strainer on top of a bowl (so they don`t sit in water as they melt,) shred 1 ½ cup of your favourite melty cheeses, – we used a ½ cup each of sharp cheddar, Havarti and Parmesan, – and another ¼ cup of Parmesan.

In a medium pot on medium heat, sauté the chopped onion and bacon with 1 tablespoon of olive oil for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally; add the minced garlic and continue to cook for another 5 minutes.

Add 2 cups of tomato sauce and 1 teaspoon each of salt, cracked black pepper and sugar, and a pinch of baking soda, mix it well, lower the heat to ‘low’, cover with a lid and cook for 30 minutes. Turn off the heat, add ½ cup of heavy cream and ¼ cup of grated parmesan, mix well.

In a large bowl, mix the part-cooked pasta, sauce, thawed peas, ¼ cup of fresh basil, ½ cup of sundried tomatoes and 1 cup of the shredded cheese blend. Put the whole mixture in a large oven-safe dish and top it with the remaining cheese blend.

Bake for 25 minutes in the 425F pre-heated oven, until the cheese has begun to caramelize on top and the pasta has finished cooking.

Bacon Rose Pasta Bake

Servings: 4

Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

1 Cup Frozen Peas, thawed and drained

½ Cup Sundried Tomatoes

1 Spanish Onion

6 Bacon Strips

3 Garlic Cloves

2 Cups Tomato Sauce

½ Cup Heavy Cream

¼ Cup Grated Parmesan

1 tsp Salt

1 tsp Cracked Black Pepper

Pinch Baking Soda

1 tsp Sugar

2 Tbsp EVOO

1 ½ Cup Shredded Cheese (we used a mix of Havarti, Cheddar and Parmesan)

¼ Cup Fresh Basil

1 Pack good Rigatoni Pasta (1 Lb)

Step-by-Step

1.       Pre-heat oven to 425F. Add 1 package of Rigatoni to salted boiling water and cook for 9 minutes. Strain, mix in 1 tbsp of olive oil and reserve.

2.       Sauté chopped onion,1 tbsp olive oil and chopped bacon in a medium pot for about 5 minutes on medium heat. Add minced garlic and cook for another 5 minutes. Add tomato sauce, salt, pepper, baking soda and sugar, cover with a lid, lower the heat to low and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3.       Turn off the heat, add cream to the sauce and ¼ cup of shredded parmesan cheese. Mix well.

4.       In a large bowl, mix all ingredients with 1 cup of the cheese blend. Place the pasta mixture in an oven-safe dish, top with the last ½ cup of the cheese blend and bake for 25 minutes.