Pasta with Peas, Bacon and Ricotta

This is a recipe that I adapted from one of my Giada cookbooks. You can find her original recipe here. This is a great recipe for using what you have in your freezer. Just add whatever meat and veggies you have on hand to some pasta with a ricotta cheese sauce. To make the ricotta cheese sauce, add the ricotta cheese to the warm cooked pasta and then add a little bit of pasta water to make it more of a sauce. I added some red pepper flakes at the end for a kick. Quick, easy and I didn't have to buy anything extra to make this.

Pasta with Peas, Bacon and Ricotta

Ingredients:

• 1 pound pasta (I used spaghetti)
• 1/2 cup part-skim ricotta
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup of frozen peas (or whatever frozen vegetable you have)
• 1/2 cup of chopped/cooked bacon (I used turkey bacon)
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Dash of red pepper flakes

Directions:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes (or according to the directions on the package). Drain pasta reserving 1 cup of the cooking water.

Transfer the hot pasta to a large bowl and add the ricotta cheese. Toss to combine.

Meanwhile, in a large, heavy skillet, warm the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the frozen peas, garlic, salt, and pepper and saute for 4 minutes. Add 1 cup of the pasta cooking liquid and continue cooking until tender, about 4 more minutes. Add the pasta with ricotta to the pan with the peas and toss to combine. I then added in the cooked bacon pieces and sprinkled some red pepper flakes to taste. Enjoy!