Keeping with the pasta and ______ theme, today’s recipe is a carb-lover’s dream! Pasta marries potatoes with the added yumminess of bacon. The potatoes release their starch and the result is a creamy dish with no cream at all. If you want to up the creaminess factor, save your parmesan rinds for this dish and add them in when you are cooking the potatoes.

Pasta and Potatoes (Pasta e Patate)

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 slices bacon, diced
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, shredded or chopped
• 1 stalk celery, shredded or chopped
• 1 small tomato, chopped or 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 potato per person, peeled and diced
• 3 cups water
• ½ box broken spaghetti or ditalini
• salt to taste, about 1 tsp

Procedure

Heat oil in a saucepan on medium heat. Brown bacon, onion, carrot and celery in the oil until the onions are translucent and the bacon has rendered its fat. Add tomatoes and cook for a few minutes. When the veggies have wilted, add the potatoes and sauté for a few minutes. Pour water to more than cover the potatoes and bring to boil. Add salt; when the potatoes are fork-tender, add the pasta. If the water level is low, add HOT water. Keep stirring to prevent pasta from sticking to the bottom! When pasta is al dente and water has mostly evaporated, serve sprinkled with Parmesan cheese. This is especially good on a cold day!

Here’s the video!

And finally, I leave you with this. I thought it was so funny! I found it on Pinterest but the website that’s associated with it is for clothing. I have no idea where it really came from.

Buon appetito!