Bucatini with Spinach, Bacon, Creamy Parmesan Sauce

• servings: 4 servings
• active time: 15 minutes
• total time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter

5 cloves garlic (minced)

1 cup half-and-half

2/3 cup parmesan cheese (shredded)

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 oz spinach

8 oz bucatini

6 strips bacon (cooked, chopped)

black pepper (coarsely ground)

Directions

In a large skillet, heat butter on medium heat. Add minced garlic. Cook, stirring, for about 1 minute.

Add half-and-half and bring to boil. Reduce to simmer. Add shredded Parmesan cheese. Keep stirring, while simmering, for a couple of minutes, until the cheese melts, and the sauce is creamy.

Stir in spinach. Remove from heat. Close the skillet with the lid. The spinach will wilt.

In the meantime, cook bucatini pasta in boiling water according to package instructions. It should be about 10 minutes for regular texture, or 8 minutes al dente. Reserve some pasta water. Drain.

Add cooked bucatini pasta to the skillet with the cream sauce. Reheat on medium-low heat. The sauce should be pretty thick and should coat the noodles. If the sauce is too thick, add a small amount of pasta water (1/4 cup) to thin it out.

Add chopped cooked bacon.

Season each individual serving plate with coarsely ground black pepper.

Nutrition

• Calories: 554 kcal
• Total Fat: 31 g
• Saturated Fat: 15 g
• Cholesterol: 70 mg
• Sodium: 732 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 48 g
• Dietary Fiber: 2 g
• Total Sugars: 1 g
• Protein: 20 g