Secret Recipe One-pot pasta with bacon, tomato & ricotta

Method One-pot pasta with bacon, tomato & ricotta

• Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the bacon, garlic and chilli and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until bacon is golden.

• Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes or until wine reduces slightly. Add the pasta and stir to coat. Add the water and passata. Season with salt. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes or until the pasta is al dente and the liquid has reduced and thickened.

• Divide pasta mixture among serving dishes. Top with the baked ricotta and parsley. Season with pepper to serve.

Secret Recipe :

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 1 tbs olive oil
• 200g bacon rashers, rind and excess fat trimmed, coarsely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes
• 125ml (1/2 cup) white wine
• 350g dried tortiglioni pasta
• 625ml (2 1/2 cups) water
• 250ml (1 cup) passata (tomato pasta sauce)
• 100g bought baked ricotta, thinly sliced
• 1/3 cup fresh continental parsley leaves

Notes

• Option 1

  Risi e bisi (rice with peas): Omit the chilli flakes, passata and baked ricotta. Replace the tortiglioni with 295g (1 1/2 cups) arborio rice. Replace the water with 1.25L (5 cups) chicken stock. Cook 1 leek, ends trimmed, washed, thinly sliced, with the bacon in step 1. Add the rice and 1 sprig fresh rosemary with the wine in step 2. Simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes or until rice is tender. Add 100g (1 1/3 cups) shredded parmesan and 150g (1 cup) frozen peas to the rice mixture and cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes or until the peas are heated through. Sprinkle with parsley to serve.

• Option 2:

  Veal pizzaiola with ricotta: Omit the pasta and water. Reduce the bacon to 100g bacon rashers. Increase the passata to 500ml (2 cups) passata. Preheat oven to 200°C. Add the passata to the pan after the wine is reduced. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Heat 1 tbs olive oil in a non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Add 4 veal schnitzels and cook for 2 minutes each side or until brown. Transfer to a roasting pan. Pour the passata mixture over the schnitzels and top with the baked ricotta. Bake for 5 minutes or until ricotta is golden. Heat 1 x 475g ctn Woolworths Potato Mash following packet instructions. Divide among serving plates. Top with veal and sprinkle with parsley to serve.

• Option 3:

  Spaghetti with bacon & pesto: Omit the chilli, passata and parsley. Replace the tortiglioni with 350g dried spaghetti pasta, broken into one-thirds. Replace the baked ricotta with 100g (1 1/3 cups) shredded parmesan. Increase the water to 1L (4 cups) water. Add 70g (1/4 cup) bought basil pesto to the pasta mixture at the end of step 2. Stir half the parmesan through the pasta mixture. Divide among serving bowls and top with an extra dollop of basil pesto. Sprinkle with the remaining parmesan to serve.