Gather ‘round the good stuff you bacon lovers!  Here’s some comfort food for you.  Of course the big bonus is if you love pasta, too.  This is a fairly simple and quick recipe that can be flexible with its ingredients and you can adjust to your taste.

When I first used this recipe it called for only 6 slices of bacon, however, I increased it to a 16 ounce package and reduced the amount of bacon fat used in the sauce. (None of us need the extra fat)  Again, adjust to your taste.

Just to mention:  I use the canned, diced tomatoes for extra color, nutrition and flavor.  The original recipe did not call for them, but I use them anyway…just be sure to drain the extra liquid from the can because the extra tomato juice will take away from the bacon flavor.

What you’ll need:

1 12 or 16 oz pkg bacon  (cubed)

1  15 oz can of diced tomatoes

1 16 oz pkg fettuccini (or spaghetti)

1 regular size onion (diced)

3 – 4 cloves garlic (chopped or minced)

½ tsp red pepper flakes

1 can or 1 med pkg sliced mushrooms (optional)

olive oil

salt and pepper (to taste)

12 inch skillet

pot of water to boil the pasta

serving tongs

Get your water boiling for the pasta. When the water is ready, add some salt and a dash of olive oil as well as the pasta.  Cook the pasta to al dente.

In the skillet, fry the cubed bacon until fairly crispy.  You should have some nice size bacon bits to work with.  Remove crisp bacon bits from skillet and drain all but about 3 tablespoons of the bacon fat.  Set bacon aside on some paper towel to drain extra fat.

In the skillet, over medium to low heat, add the diced onion, chopped garlic, red pepper flakes, mushrooms and about a tablespoon of olive oil.  Fry, stirring occasionally for about 3 minutes and add the can of drained, diced tomatoes.  Stir occasionally, adding a little more olive oil, and slowly simmer for another 5 minutes.

THE TRICK HERE IS…adding enough olive oil to the sauce to coat the pasta, but not so much to make your finished dish too oily.  This should be a light, flavorful, slightly spicy sauce.

After pasta is finished, drain the pasta while reserving about 1 cup of the hot pasta water.  Add the drained pasta to the skillet of sauce, immediately followed by the cup of hot pasta water.  Leave the skillet on low heat while stirring the pasta into the sauce slowly and carefully with serving tongs.

At this point you can leave the pasta in the skillet to serve, or in a pasta dish.  Top the pasta with all of the crispy bacon you’ve set aside.  You may also have some grated parmesan cheese on the table for individual’s taste.

I like serving this pasta while it is still in the skillet to keep it warmer for second helpings.  My favorite accompaniments are salad, asparagus and garlic bread.  Bon appetite.