Name: Spaghetti with Bacon and Spinach
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 1 lb. of bacon; 16 oz. of fresh baby spinach; 1/2 cup of bread crumbs, toasted; 4 cloves of garlic, grated; 1/4 cup fresh parmesan or romano cheese, grated; 2-3 tbs. of butter; 2-3 tbs. of olive oil; 4 slices of fresh lemon with skin; 1 tsp. coarse black pepper; 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes; 1/2 tsp. salt; 1 lb. of your favorite spaghetti

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This pasta dish delivers forkfuls of al dente spaghetti coated in a luscious combination of buttery spinach, crispy bacon, and parmesan cheese.

If you’re like me, you often find yourself thinking about, and craving, pasta (that’s not just me, right?). Rich, perfectly textured pasta coated in whatever delicious sauce happens to catch your fancy at the moment. But alas, such pasta takes time, effort, and very specific ingredients to make.

You know the old saying “Rome wasn’t built in a day, and marinara takes all night.”

While I don’t have the answer for building a New Rome inside of an afternoon, I do have a quick and easy pasta recipe that assuredly does ‘not’ take all night.

Today, we’re preparing Spaghetti with Spinach and Bacon. Bursting with Italian-inspired flavors, this dish combines the rich, smoky taste of crispy bacon with the earthy and warming notes of spinach sautéed in oil, butter, and garlic, tossed with perfectly cooked spaghetti – tips on preparing the perfect pasta noodle below.

Really, I consider this recipe to be the perfect way to satisfy your pasta craving with a little taste of Italy without all of the fuss. If that catches your fancy, then read on for a printable recipe card, a complete ingredient checklist, pairing suggestions, and tips for prepping the perfect pasta noodle.

What to Expect – Recipe Overview

If you’ve read this far, I’ve likely piqued your interest, but you also probably still have a few questions. You might be wondering what this recipe is like in terms of taste and texture, or how difficult it is to make, or what the prep process is like.
For the answer to those questions and more, see below.

Taste and Texture: This pasta dish is a delightful combination of crispy smoky bacon, melding beautifully with spinach sautéed in garlic and oil, carried on perfectly cooked pasta. Meanwhile, the toasted breadcrumbs provide a satisfying crunch, while a copious amount of Parmesan cheese adds a salty richness that ties the whole thing together.
Difficulty Level: As simple as frying bacon, sautéing spinach, and then boiling pasta. That said, I view this recipe as being relatively simple, and accessible to home cooks of all skill levels. Preparing this recipe involves baking (or frying) bacon until crispy, wilting spinach, and then tossing cooked spaghetti with the remaining ingredients. While there are indeed multiple steps to this recipe that involve combining multiple components (each separately prepared), each step is straightforward and relatively quick to complete, making this a great recipe for both beginner and experienced cooks alike.
Preparation Process: To make this recipe, you'll start by baking (or frying!) the bacon until crispy, and then toasting the breadcrumbs (preferably in a cast iron pan). Once that’s done, it’s time to wilt the spinach in a pan with butter and olive oil. Lastly, we cook the spaghetti. I prefer mine al dente (more on that below). To bring it all together, we toss the spaghetti with the spinach, bacon, breadcrumbs, and grated cheese. The entire process is relatively quick and can be completed in about 30 minutes, making this a great recipe for busy weeknights or last-minute meals.
Pairing Suggestions: All your favorite pasta pairings apply here. That said, I would suggest serving it alongside a simple green salad dressed with a light vinaigrette. Garlic bread, or crusty Italian bread with dipping oil, would also work great. For drinks, consider pairing this pasta dish with a crisp white wine, such as a decent Pinot Grigio, or a light-bodied red, such as a Pinot Noir.

Ingredient Checklist – Everything You’ll Need

This recipe requires only simple, affordable ingredients that are readily available at your local supermarket. Here’s a list of everything you’ll need, along with tips and relevant substitutions.

1 lb. of bacon
- Tip: I do suggest using thick-cut bacon, as this will hold up better, maintaining its crispy texture without becoming soggy or overpowered.
- Substitutions: You can of course use turkey bacon or vegan bacon, if preferred.
16 oz. of fresh baby spinach
- Tip: Wash and thoroughly dry the spinach before cooking. No one wants sand as an added ingredient, and if you don’t thoroughly dry the spinach that can negatively impact its texture through cooking.
- Substitution: Frozen spinach can be used as a substitute, but I will caution that it needs to be thoroughly thawed and well-drained, otherwise it will add too much moisture to the recipe.
1/2 cup of bread crumbs - toasted
- Note: You can use plain or seasoned breadcrumbs according to your preference. Both work just fine.
- Tip: Using panko breadcrumbs will add extra crunch if desired.
4 cloves of garlic - grated
- Note: Grating the garlic allows it to better permeate the recipe, and ensures that all of the juices are absorbed into the pasta. Delicious.
- Tip: You can of course adjust the amount of garlic to suit your taste.
1/4 cup fresh parmesan or romano cheese - grated
- Tip: I cannot stress enough the difference that using freshly grated cheese makes.
- Substitute: Use your preferred grating cheese type, such as Pecorino Romano, Parmesan, Regiano, or Locatelli.
2 - 3 tbs. of butter
- Tip: I do suggest using unsalted butter for this particular recipe.
- Substitution: You can leave the butter out and add a bit more olive oil if you prefer not to use butter. Yes, your dairy-free butter alternative can be substituted.
2 - 3 tbs. of olive oil
- Tip: I suggest using high-quality, extra virgin olive oil, as the taste of the olive oil does come through in this recipe.
4 slices of fresh lemon - with skin
- Note: If you prefer not to use the whole lemon slice, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice will add all of the lemon-citrus flavors you need.
- Tip: If adding in the rind as directed, I suggest using organic lemons if possible, as they are often (though not always) wax-free.
- Substitute: Lemon zest can be used as a substitute if you prefer to not use the whole lemon sliced.
1 tsp. coarse black pepper
- Note: You can of course adjust the amount of pepper according to taste.
- Tip: Freshly ground black pepper really does make a difference, especially aromatically.
- Substitute: White pepper can be used for a milder pepper flavor.
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
- Note: Plain red pepper flakes are really all you need here.
- Tip: You can of course adjust the amount of red pepper flakes based on your desired level of heat.
- Substitute: Aleppo pepper or chili powder can be substituted if desired. You can also add a pinch of cayenne or your preferred chili flakes for added heat.

Pasta Variations – Getting Creative

Feel like infusing this recipe with herbs? Or getting a little extra cheesy? Or maybe you feel like spicing things up! Here are some tips on doing exactly that.

Vegetarian Option: You can simply omit the bacon, and today’s recipe remains delicious. Conversely, you could substitute the bacon with diced grilled mushrooms or smoked tofu. You could also sauté the mushrooms or tofu until golden before adding them to the spaghetti.
Creamy Spinach Pasta: For creamier pasta, simply add a splash of heavy cream to the pan after tossing the spaghetti with the spinach. Allow it to simmer for a few minutes until the sauce thickens slightly. You could also add a few dollops of ricotta or mascarpone, and toss until combined and creamy. For ultra decadence, add all three.
Herb Infusion: Super simple to do. This recipe pairs deliciously with fresh herbs such as basil, thyme, or parsley. Chop the herbs finely and add them to the pan along with the spinach for a burst of herbal goodness.
Cheese Variations: Experiment with different types of cheese to customize the dish to your taste. Substitute the Parmesan or Romano cheese with shredded mozzarella for a gooey, melty finish, or try feta cheese for a tangy twist. Or, best of all, mix and match.
Bring the Meat: As simple as grilling chicken or steak and then slicing it into the pasta before tossing. This also works deliciously with sausage.
Spice it Up: Slice up your spicy chili pepper of choice, and then either grill it or add it to the pasta fresh. You can also adjust the level of heat by increasing or decreasing the amount of red pepper flakes or adding in cayenne to the mix (which I would suggest mixing with chili powder to avoid overpowering the pasta).
Nutty Goodness: One of my favorite additions is toasted pine nuts or slivered almonds for added texture and a subtle nutty flavor. You can either saute them with the spinach or sprinkle them over the dish just before serving for an elegant touch.
Fresh Tomatoes: Add diced fresh tomatoes to the pan along with the spinach for a burst of freshness and color.

Pasta Pointers – How To Achieve a ‘Perfect’ Noodle

Undercook your pasta. As with all pasta, you don’t want overcooked ‘mush’ with today’s recipe. On the contrary, you want a ‘firm’ noodle. To do this, you need to start by undercooking your pasta. You are taking your pasta from the boiling water in which it was cooking, and then adding it to the scalding hot ‘sauce’ of the spinach and bacon, where it will invariably continue to cook for some time. Thus, if you overcook or even ‘fully’ cook the noodles prior to mixing it with the spinach and bacon, the noodles will become ‘mushy’ and overly tender.
No seriously – undercook your pasta. If you don’t believe me, a 2017 article in Bon Appetit confirms that Al Dente is ‘functionally’ overcooked…usually. The article makes the point that you almost always finish your pasta by tossing it in some sort of cooked sauce, be it red sauce, white sauce, or garlic and oil. Thus, if you want truly cooked-to-perfection pasta, you want prepare it “Molto Al Dente,” which translates roughly as ‘undercooked,’ with the idea being that the pasta will continue cooking for a minute or two (or three) as you toss it in the sauce and then prepare to eat it. Of course, if you’re not drenching your pasta in freshly cooked sauce, or coating it in heated oil, then feel free to cook it to the point of Al Dente – but that’s precisely what we’re doing with today’s recipe.
Salt the Water – A Lot. Salted water adds savory-ness to your pasta, dilutes its starchy qualities and covers up any potential imperfections – which are present even in the highest quality brands you can buy. The end result is a better-tasting, more palatable pasta.
Rinsing Pasta Damages It. Rinsing cooked pasta damages it – end of story. I’m not sure where, when, or how this idea came about, but it’s a painfully common ritual to rinse pasta under lukewarm-to-cold water in strainers after it’s been cooked. I don’t know what this ritual is meant to achieve aside from artificially cooling down the pasta, or trying to ‘unstick’ the pasta from itself. The problem is, you can let the pasta cool by just leaving it alone, and the reason the pasta is sticking together is due to ‘surface starch,’ the same starch that serves to help sauce ‘stick’ to the pasta, and that gives the pasta a slightly more ‘textured’ quality. In other words, when you rinse off pasta after cooking, you’re literally rinsing away added quality. Stop this, don’t do it, it’s silly.
The Noodle Shape – More Than Preference, Less Than Vital. Let’s be real, no one has ever ‘ruined’ a recipe by picking the ‘wrong’ pasta to pair with their sauce, soup, or stew. However, there are some general guidelines that will help you maximize your enjoyment. As a rule of thumb, tube shaped pasta generally pairs well with thick hearty sauces that can ‘trap’ or ‘catch’ within the tube, such as ziti, rigatoni, and penne. The larger the tube pasta, the heartier the sauce it pairs with. Stick or ‘rod’ shaped pasta, such as spaghetti, spaghettoni, and capellini, are generally best paired with olive oil and garlic or tomato-based sauces, since these types of pasta serve best when they can be uniformly coated by the sauce, since the pasta cannot ‘catch’ or ‘trap’ heavier sauces in the way that something like rigatoni can. Ribbon pasta is generally ideal for creamier sauces. Think of the heavenly pairing of fettucine and alfredo sauce.