Ready for a luscious pasta dish? This is it! I admit- Ryan & I are both pasta-aholics. Need a quick dinner? We’re usually reaching for some pasta & creating a dish out of what we have. This recipe uses high-quality pasta I discovered & some absolutely luscious cheese & butter! Keep reading to dive in!
I am a big okra fan & my husband (ok, & me!) is pretty obsessed with bacon so this recipe was born out of a few leftovers in our fridge. In my cupboard I also had some seriously gorgeous organic pasta I’d been wanting to show ! That’s how this recipe was born- obviously with my desperate need for cheesy, saucy, pasta goodness as well.
A little tidbit about the special ingredients I used: they’re divine. I am a firm believer that sometimes you need to branch out & try specialty ingredients. Even basic staples like butter & pasta have luxe counterparts that can really amp up a meal. The butter & swiss cheese I used are both from Finlandia. All of the Finlandia products are all-natural & they’ve specialized in cheeses & butter for over a century. The pasta is from the Monograno Felicetti line & made with USDA Organic ingredients as well as having top-notch ingredients farmed in Puglia & Sicily. I’m dying to try more from both of these lines!
- 8 oz pasta (I used Monograno Felicetti - Penne Ritorte Matt)
- 2 tablespoons butter, unsalted & divided
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ to ¾ cup whole milk
- ⅓ cup shredded Finlandia Swiss Cheese ( approximately 1.5 oz)
- 1 large egg yolk, beaten
- 2 cups chopped okra
- 4-5 bacon slices, thick cut
- Garnish with salt, fresh cracked pepper, & chopped fresh parsley
- Place 1 pan & 2 pot on the stove. You'll need the first pot to be large enough to boil the pasta & the second is a saucepan to create the sauce. The pan needs to be large enough to cook your bacon, okra, & toss your pasta with sauce if desired. I personally serve it atop the pasta/sauce.
- In your large pot of boiling, salted water- cook your pasta according to package ingredients.
- In your large pan over medium heat cook your bacon until crispy. Remove from grease & drain then crumble. Wipe down your pan reserving 1 teaspoon of bacon grease.
- Add okra to the same pan over medium heat with reserved bacon grease & 1 tablespoon of butter. Saute.
- To create your sauce combine 1 tablespoon of butter, garlic, heavy cream, & ½ cup milk over medium heat in your saucepan. Bring to a simmer & remove from heat. Whisking constantly, stir in the egg yolk & Swiss cheese. To thin out sauce, add additional milk as needed.
- Serve immediately with fresh cracked pepper, bacon okra mixture, & fresh parsley. Add salt if desired.
What special recipes do you crave when you want luxury? What are your favorite specialty ingredients? I want to hear all about what you’re loving in the comments below!
