a simple, savory pasta dish made with paccheri, softened leeks, fresh spinach, bacon, basil, crème fraîche, and lemon
servings: 2 large portions
Ingredients
Scale
6 oz bacon, large dice
1 ½ lbs leeks, trimmed + thinly sliced
½ lb paccheri
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 lemon, juiced
¼ cup crème fraîche
2 (heaping) cups spinach
½ cup torn basil leaves
grated pecorino cheese, for topping
kosher salt
freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil.
Heat a 3-qt sauté panover medium heat. Add the bacon. Stir well and cook for 5 minutes. Lower the heat all the way and continue to render until crisp, 8-12 more minutes, stirring often. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels.
Pour off the bacon fat, reserving just 2 tablespoons in the pan. Return the heat to medium and add the leeks. Season with a pinch of salt. Cook for about 6 minutes until softened. Meanwhile, drop the paccheri into the boiling water. Stir well and cook for 1 minute less than the package’s instructions.
Transfer the leeks out of the pan and set aside. Add the butter and garlic to the pan. Stir as the butter melts and the garlic softens. Add the lemon juice, along with 1 cup of starchy pasta water. Simmer the sauce for 2 minutes.
Stir in the crème fraîche and lots of freshly cracked black pepper. At this point the pasta should be done cooking. Strain it right into the sauce. Stir for a minute or two so the sauce thickens and clings to the pasta (it will continue to thicken once plated so don’t worry if it looks a little thin).
Stir in the spinach and basil until wilted. Lastly, stir in the leeks and bacon. Serve immediately with lots of pecorino and more black pepper over top.