Pasta with Chard, Bacon and Cheeses

Pasta with Chard, Bacon and Cheeses hits so many favorites buttons.  Pasta? Check! Bacon? Check! Melted Cheeses? Check! Add wonderful colorful, juicy, earthy chard and heavy cream and it’s sure to become a favorite at your house.  Pasta with Chard, Bacon and Cheeses, while easy to prepare, makes a tempting presentation for company too, both in looks and aroma.  Make some Pasta with Chard, Bacon and Cheeses tonight, perhaps with a Wilted Arugula Salad appetizer, and fall in love with a new favorite!

Prep Time: 30 minutes, Total Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes Serves: 4

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Ingredients:

• 14 oz. White/Green Chard, select a bunch with firm stems and full, crisp leaves
• 4 Tbs Olive Oil
• 4 oz Smoky Bacon
• ½ tsp Crushed Red Pepper flakes
• 1 medium Onion, peeled and trimmed
• 2 cloves of Garlic, peeled and trimmed
• 3 oz Heavy Cream
• 8 oz assorted Cheeses, choose 3 or 4 from Fontina, Mozzarella, Swiss, Gouda, Asiago
• 2 oz/57 grams Rigatoni, Penne, Ziti or Mostaccioli Pasta per person

Preparation:

1. Rinse the chard under cold running water to remove sand and grit from both the stalks and leaves.
2. Shake the rinsed chard free of any clinging water.
3. Cut the chard leaves from the stalks. Trim the bottoms from the stalks and cut into 1-inch pieces.  Cut the leaves into roughly 1-inch square pieces.  Place the cut chard stalks and leaves into separate bowls.
4. Add the olive oil to a wide, deep frying pan over a medium high heat.
5. Dice the bacon and add to the frying pan, cook until the bacon begins to crisp.
6. While the bacon is cooking, dice the onion, mince the garlic and combine in a bowl.
7. Place a large pot of well-salted water over a high heat and bring to a boil. Once the water is boiling, add the pasta and cook until al dente.
8. When the bacon is crisp, add the crushed red pepper flakes, onion and garlic to the frying pan. Stir to mix and sauté until the onion begins to soften.
9. Add the chard stem pieces to the frying pan. Mix thoroughly, add a splash of the pasta water, cover and sauté until the chard stems begin to soften.
10. Add the chard leaves to the frying pan, stir thoroughly to mix with other ingredients in the pan, and sauté uncovered until the leaves begin to wilt.
11. Add the heavy cream to the frying pan, raise the heat to high and cook until the cream thickens.
12. Drain the cooked pasta and add to the frying pan; stir to mix.
13. Immediately add the grated cheeses, to the frying pan, stirring the cheeses into the pasta and sauce and turn off the heat.
14. Serve Pasta with Chard, Bacon and Cheeses immediately.