Bacon, Avocado, Bleu Cheese, and Basil Pasta

Disclosure: This is my final post as a member of the Kraft Tastemakers Team. As always, all recipes and opinions remain my own. It’s been a fun year! Thank you, Kraft Foods.

Spring is an amazing time of renewal. When the snow starts to melt and buds start to peek out from the ends of branches I feel a surge of energy.
I tidy and organize my bookshelves. I clean my kitchen from top to bottom. I hang pillows out on the line to freshen up in the strengthening rays of the sun.
Would that this productivity could motivate me to win my years-long battle with the laundry monster lurking in my basement. Alas. Not even spring can help me there.

I am, however, feeling a little urge to get back into my blog archives and put them in order, too. Older posts of recipes that remain favourites that languish back in the early days of Foodie with Family, suffering from silly formatting, unappealing photos, and lack of printable versions of themselves are ripe for a make-over.

Today, I’m beginning that process. May I introduce you (or re-introduce you) to Bacon, Gorgonzola, Avocado, and Basil pasta? This recipe has been a well-loved friend since I first published it in 2010. It’s in the rotation of dishes I make for myself when my husband is on business trips. Why? It’s not that he dislikes it. He loves it. It’s just that when he’s gone, I feel the need to treat myself with comforting, fast, simple foods that I can make and eat off of for a couple of days. It hits all the right notes and nobody cares if my breath is a little odiferous.

If you’re so inclined, go look at the old recipe and old photos then come back and see my progress. I think we can agree there’s been a bit of improvement.

So, in honour of spring FINALLY being here and polishing up the world so it looks all new and pretty, I give you a lovely printable of a favourite archived recipe!

Avocado, Bacon, Bleu Cheese Pasta

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Rebecca Lindamood

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Ingredients

  

• 1 pound uncooked small shaped pasta fusilli, farfalle, penne, wagon wheels, etc…
• 12 to 16 ounces thick sliced bacon Oscar Mayer bacon is a good choice, sliced into 1/2-inch strips
• 2 small cooking onions peeled, cut in half and sliced into half-moons
• 1 very ripe avocado peel and pit removed and discarded
• 1/2 cup lightly packed basil leaves snipped or very thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup crumbled bleu cheese Athenos bleu cheese is a good choice.
• 2 cloves garlic peeled and minced, or 1 teaspoon garlic paste
• 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

 

• Add the bacon strips to a large, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat. Stir the bacon and cook until crispy. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the bacon to a paper towel lined plate. Pour all but about 2 teaspoons out of the pan.
• Return the pan to the burner over medium heat and add the onions to the pan with a pinch of salt. Stirring frequently, cook until the onions are crisp tender (about 5 minutes) and golden in color. Transfer the onions to a large mixing bowl.
• Pour the lemon juice over the two halves of avocado. Coarsely chop the avocado and add to the bowl with the onions. Stir to combine. Add the red wine vinegar, garlic, and all but 2 tablespoons each of the crispy bacon, snipped basil and the bleu cheese and stir well again.
• Bring a gallon of water to a full rolling boil in a large stockpot. Salt the water and pour in the pasta. Cook to al dente according to package directions.
• Drain the pasta, reserving about a cup of the pasta water. Add the hot pasta to the avocado mixture. Stir in gently but thoroughly to distribute the sauce. If it is too thick, add a splash of the reserved pasta water to thin it. Taste and adjust seasonings with salt and black pepper. Top the pasta with the reserved basil, bacon and bleu cheese and serve warm or room temperature.

Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.

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Hippity hop on over to KraftRecipes.com to stock up on great Spring dessert ideas!

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