With this unpredictable weather, I needed to find a pasta dish that is as excellent hot as it is cold. This adaptation of Pasta Carbonara is what I devised. First it was a steaming hot dish on a chilly evening and then pasta salad to go with grilled chicken the next night (well, it would have been if we hadn’t devoured it by lunchtime). Just tossing a few fresh ingredients with some hot pasta shells has a quite delicious result.
For this dish I used shell pasta because the shells catch the pesto and other ingredients so well. It also complemented the halved olives and cherry tomatoes. Others types like bow-ties might have been fine, but shells were a clear winner in my book. Plus, they were on clearance for 66 cents a box at the store!
Pasta Carbonara
- 1lb shell pasta
- 6 strips bacon cooked and chopped
- 1/2 cup peas ( fresh or canned)
- 1/2 cup black olives halved
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 1/3 cup pesto (mine is frozen from a batch last summer)
Prepare pasta as directed and make sure it is a little al dente (Did you know al dente pasta takes longer to digest and so you feel full longer? I read it in an article on glycemic index). Meanwhile, mix remaining ingredients in a large bowl. When the pasta is ready after draining, immediately add it to the bowl with the other ingredients and toss liberally. Serve hot or cold.
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