Before I get into the deliciousness that is this recipe for summer corn and bacon pasta, can I ask if anyone else gets all emotional at their local farm market?
Because I do. I look at the piles of local tomatoes and blueberries and corn and have to hold myself back from piling unreasonable amounts of them into my shopping basket, because I just know that in a heartbeat it is going to be fall and we will be surrounded by pumpkins and all the corn will be GONE.
And so I am making very sure that I am cooking suppers full of tomatoes and corn as many times a week as I can fit them in.
This recipe also includes spinach and ricotta cheese, and my favorite always-in-season ingredient, bacon.
The other scrumptious thing about this recipe is that it takes almost no time in the kitchen. More time for lounging around in the summer sunshine.
But first, get yourself a few ears of fresh corn…
…and I like to top this dish with a pile of creamy ricotta, so here comes my regular pitch for you to try making your own ricotta. It takes 10 minutes, no weird ingredients, and it tastes like HEAVEN.
But if you decide to go with a supermarket ricotta, that’s okay too! Okay, let’s get going!
ingredients you need to make corn and bacon pasta!
Here’s How to make Corn and Bacon Pasta!
STEP 1: Cook 8 ounces of your favorite short pasta according to package directions. Scoop out a cup of pasta water before you drain it.
STEP 2: While the pasta is cooking, sauté 6 slices of chopped bacon in a large deep skillet until crispy. Remove and set aside, leaving drippings in the skillet.
STEP 3: Add 4 cups of baby spinach to the skillet and cook over medium heat until wilted. Add the pasta and kernels from 2 ears of corn and sauté until warmed through.
STEP 4: Add a couple tablespoons of butter and just enough pasta water to make a light sauce and toss again. Stir in bacon, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
STEP 5: Divide among plates and (if you want to go to pasta heaven) top with ricotta and more pepper if you like. Enjoy!
More tips for making corn and bacon pasta!
Spread a dishtowel out on your counter (this is to catch the runaway kernels that like to bounce away), put a shallow bowl on the cloth and firmly hold the top of the ear of corn in one hand in the center of the bowl – it doesn’t matter which end. Use a paring knife in a zig-zag motion to cut the kernels off in strips until you have gotten all the kernels off.
When pasta cooks, it releases starch into the water (that is what makes it a little cloudy). And since hopefully you have thoroughly salted your water, at the end of the pasta cooking time you have a starchy, salty water that is ABSOLUTELY PERFECT for making or loosening up a light pasta sauce. It’s truly magical.
You can (sob!)…use a tablespoon or so of olive or canola oil to cook up the spinach since you won’t (sob!) have the bacon drippings.
Drop it in the comments section below and I will answer pronto!
And there you have it – so many good tastes all on one plate. Summer deliciousness!
Corn and Bacon Pasta
This easy recipe for corn and bacon pasta captures the fresh flavors of the season in one quick supper. With a little ricotta cheese on top!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 8 ounces short pasta (campanelle, penne, bow-tie, etc)
- 6 slices thick cut bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces
- Kernels from 2 ears of corn
- 4 cups baby spinach
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup fresh ricotta (optional)
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to directions. Scoop out a cup of pasta water before you drain it.
- While the pasta is cooking, saute bacon in a large deep skillet until crispy. Remove and set aside, leaving drippings in the skillet.
- Add the spinach to the skillet and cook over medium heat until wilted. Add pasta and corn and saute until warmed through. Add butter and just enough pasta water to make a light sauce and toss again. Stir in bacon, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Divide among plates and top with ricotta and more pepper if you like. Enjoy!
Equipment We Used to Make This Recipe
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Need to add something to your kitchen equipment to make this recipe? Below are some of the items we used in the Framed Cooks kitchen to help cook this up. These are affiliate links to things we use and love, which helps to pay for all that bacon I keep buying (without any extra cost to you)! Thanks for using them to keep our kitchen cooking…xoxo!
OTHER SUMMER PASTA RECIPES WE LOVE!
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