Pesto Crumbed Bacon and Mushroom Fiorelli

Make this hearty, creamy and luxurious pasta on a day when you need a big bowl of comfort. A deliciously silk sauce, finished with a smokey salty punch and topped with a pesto crumb for added texture and depth.

Serves - 4 Prep time - 5 mins cook time - 30 mins

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Ingredients:

For the pasta

• 300g of streaky bacon

• 30g of fresh thyme

• 2 knobs of butter

• 4 garlic cloves minced

• 1 lemon (half juiced, half sliced)

• 2 tbsp of creme fraiche

• 100g of parmesan grated (reserve 30g for serving and)

• 1tsp of salt

• 1tsp of pepper

• 0.5tsp of chilli flakes

• 100g of button mushrooms

• 350g of fiorelli

For the pesto curmb

• 70g of panko breadcrumbs

• 1 tbsp of green pesto

• 20g of parmesan

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1. Place the bacon in a roasting tray and top with half of the thyme, bake for 20mins on gas mark 6

2. Whilst the bacon is roasting, place 2 knobs of butter in a large frying pan and add the minced garlic cloves, mushrooms and the rest of the thyme, cook for 7-10 min on a low heat stirring frequently. Add half a lemon sliced and cook for another 4/5 mins turning the lemons half way through and giving them enough room to caramelise golden.

3. Remove the lemons and add the creme fraiche, 70g parmesan, salt, pepper, chilli flakes, the other half of the lemon juiced and 75ml of water, mix it all together until you get a smooth sauce. Place on a really low simmer and leave.

4. Boil the fiorelli in salted water (around a 2tsp) for ten mins, drain making sure you reserve the pasta water.

5. Add the pasta to the sauce and ladle with some of the pasta water (around 1 ladle or 4/5 tbsp).

4. Take out the bacon and onto the pesto crumb - add the breadcrumbs, pesto and parmesan to a separate frying pan and cook on a medium heat for 3/4 mins stirring occasionally.

5. Chop up the bacon and add 3/4 to the pasta, stirring it through. Now plate up the pasta and top with the rest of the bacon and the pesto crumb.