Tasty Tuesday

OMG! A Tasty Tuesday post on a Tuesday. Wow!

Today I'm featuring another selection from my Taste of Home Healthy Cooking magazine. In case you don't know this already....I Love Taste of Home!!!! Haven't had a bad recipe yet.



Ok...now for the good stuff.




Makeover Rigatoni with Bacon and Asparagus

Ingredients:
2 servings of spiral pasta (or any pasta type)
1/2 lb. fresh asparagus, trimmed and coarsely chopped
5 strips turkey bacon (or regular bacon)
1/2 garlic clove
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/3 cup half-and-half cream
1/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/8 cup minced fresh parsley

Directions:
1. Cook pasta according to package directions
2. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven (or large skillet) bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Add asparagus; cover and boil for 3 minutes. Drain and immediately place asparagus in ice water. Drain and pat dry.
3. In same pan, cook bacon over medium head until crisp. Remove to paper towels to drain. Crumble bacon and set aside.
4. Next, saute garlic in butter and oil until tender. Stir in cream. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer, uncovered, for 3-4 minutes or until slightly thickened.
5. Stir in mozzerella cheese until melted. Add drained pastsa to pan. Stir in the salt, asparagus, and bacon. Sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and parsley.
6. Serve and enjoy!

Review:

LOVED IT!
The original recipe made 8 servings. I cut most of the ingredients in half so we wouldn't have left overs. GF pasta doesn't keep well. I also made substitutes, like the Turkey Bacon. It ranks at kinda-easy on my difficulty scale.There was quite a bit of prep involved.....bowl of ice water for asparagus, grated cheeses, measuring cups/spoons, chopping, boiling, etc. It also required a lot of pans for me to make it....needing to cook the GF pasta separately and all. However, I was able to cook the whole meal while trying to keep a small dog from pooping in my house. That should give you a good idea of what it takes to make it. Whatever hassle you have while cooking, it is totally worth it.

Delicious!