Penne With Bacon and Butter

This dish is an example of two being better than one. The hubby wanted a quick pasta dinner. I wanted something new and not from a jar. A quick scan of the cookbooks brought me to a recipe from Williams Sonoma's Pasta. We had most of the ingredients and we just fudged the rest. It turned out rather well, if I do say so myself.

Makes 3-4 servings

Ingredients
1 lb penne pasta
5 slices of cooked bacon
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 medium white onion
1 cup water
1/2 tsp salt
Nutmeg
Pepper
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Directions
BOIL water for pasta
SALT generously
ADD pasta
COOK until al dente

SLICE onion thinly

MELT butter over low heat
ADD onion
SAUTE until soft
ADD water and salt
REDUCE until water has cooked off

DRAIN pasta
PLACE in medium bowl

SLICE bacon thinly
ADD bacon and onion mixture to the pasta
ADD pepper and nutmeg to taste
ADD three tablespoons of Parmesan cheese

MIX well
PLATE and sprinkle with the remaining cheese.

My Thoughts
1. The original recipe called for prosciutto (yea, that's a kitchen staple). The bacon substitution worked fine, but I would have preferred it if the bacon had been added in with the onions to get a bit softer. The chewier edges were an odd texture in the final dish, though the flavor was great.

2. I added a whole bunch of pepper and three quick dashes of nutmeg.

3. This is not a sauce heavy pasta, but it's tasty and you don't miss anything. This would be beautiful served with a salad. It's a great dish because it looks "fancy" but it's quick and easy to pull together.