Corkscrew Pasta with Bacon & Asparagus

This pasta dish is just flat out yummy! The dressing is light and fresh and the bacon gives the meal a rich savory flavor. It doesn’t really matter if this cools off a bit before you serve it...it tastes great warm or cold. I serve it with baguette slices topped with goat cheese, jam & walnuts. Hello?! Can you say delish!?

Pasta Ingredients:
1/2 lb corkscrew pasta
1 bunch of asparagus, ends trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
4 slices of bacon
1/4 pine nuts
2-4 cloves of garlic, minced
Parmesan or Pecorino Cheese

Dressing:
2 Tbl extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbl lemon juice
1 Tbl white wine vinegar
salt & pepper to taste
Whisk all dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside until just ready to serve.



1.Cook pasta according to the directions on the box.
2.Drizzle a little olive oil over cut asparagus. Sprinkle on salt and pepper to taste. Roast the asparagus in the oven on 425F for approx 8 min or until asparagus is crisp tender.
3.Cook bacon till crisp in a large pan. Remove bacon and set aside. Drain all but 1 tsp of bacon grease from the pan. Chop bacon into little pieces.
4.Saute pine nuts over med/low heat in bacon grease until lightly browned. Add minced garlic to pine nuts and saute for one minute.
5.Add drained pasta noodles, roasted asparagus and chopped bacon to the pan with nuts and garlic. Add whisked dressing. Mix well to incorporate all ingredients.
Top with cheese just before serving.