Pasta Recipe: Pasta Con Pancetta, Carciofi, Pistacchi E Gorgonzola: Pasta With Bacon, Artichokes, Pistachios and Gorgonzola

Pasta Recipe

 

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The dishes of Italy change region to region and some of those changes are very subtle and some of those changes are very deliberate. Either way I just love my Italian food and this pasta recipe in particular. I also happen to be a really big fan of Sicilian food and this dish is a Sicilian pasta recipe. Sicily is not Italy and I know that to this day many people confuse the two. Sicilian food can be more fiery than many Italian foods, but in many cases there are man similiarities between the foods of the two cultures. The dish that I have prepared for this blog post is called Pasta Con Pancetta, Carciofi, Gorgonzola E Pistachhi or Pasta With Bacon, Artichokes, Gorgonzola and Pistachios it is a lovely Sicilian pasta recipe. It is a delicious, sweet, creamy, cheesy, hot and salty tasting dish that is sure to please the most ardent of Italian pasta foodies. I promise!

The pistachio is one of my absolute favorite nuts to eat and they have just about the most perfect balance of being meaty and at the same time having an undercurrent of sweetness. This pasta recipe can be made with any choice of pastas from farfalle, penne rigate,conchiglie, armoniche rigatoni, rigatoni and fusili. This pasta recipe can also be made with long pasta like regular spaghetti, linguine, perciatelli,bucatini, angel hair and capelli d' angelo. In the case of using long pasta you will plate the pasta and then spoon the sauce over the top of it rather than with the smaller macaroni's which you will pour the sauce on and mix together before plating.

Pistachio nuts are grown all over the world in different places but, the pistachios that are grown in Sicily are highly valued for the distinguished green color and these pistachios are considered some of the finest in the world and are exported to a hungry world from Sicily. The vast majority of the pistachios are grown in a region called Bronte' in the Mount Etna region of Sicily. Here in the states we eat pistachios as snacks and we make pistachio ice cream which I happen to really love. In Sicily however the valued pistachio is used in local treats and one that you might be familiar with is Sicily's gelato pistachio. The loved pistachio is also used in cakes, cookies and other fine savory dishes and of course in this pasta recipe I am presenting to you. I hope you try this great pasta recipe! I know that you will enjoy it!


Ingredients:

3/4 cup Pistachio nuts.
1/2 cup heavy cream.
2 Tbsp unsalted butter.
2Tbsp olive oil.
1 Onion chopped.
4oz Bacon. I used bacon ends and pieces for the meat content it is better than regular sliced bacon.
4 Cloves garlic 2 cloves minced or pureed 2 cloves thick sliced. I do this for texture and flavor.
1/2 Tsp. red pepper flakes.
1 Cup white wine. I used Pinot Grigio.
1 Cup chicken stock.
1/2 Tsp. Salt
1/2 Tsp. Black pepper.
3oz + Gorgonzola Cheese.
1/4 Cup fresh grated Parmesan or Parmigiano Regiano blend. I used Parmesan, Romano and Asiago blend.
1 Lb pasta. I used Penne Rigate but you can use any of the pastas that I listed in the blog post above.
5 or 6 Artichoke hearts with stems if you can get them that way or purchase and prepare fresh artichokes.

Method:

1. Cook pasta in well salted water. Once cooked then drain and put back in pot. Coat with olive oil and put lid on pot. Put on back burner.

2. Allow 1/2 cup of cream to come to room temp. Then add cream and pistachios to food processor and blend till smooth. Put aside for later.

3. The other 1/4 cup of pistachios keep aside to use as garnish. Either grind them up a bit or leave whole. Choice is yours.

4. Put butter and olive oil in large skillet on med. high and bring to a sizzle.

5. When butter and olive oil sizzle it is time to put in the onions. Cook until translucent and soft.

6. Now add the bacon, garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until bacon and garlic browns.

7. Now deglaze the skillet with white wine and reduce the wine to half.

8. When wine is reduced it is time to stir in the chicken stock and pistachio cream mixture then add your salt and black pepper. Bring the sauce to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer and simmer for 10-15 minutes to get the sauce to an acceptable consistency.

(While the sauce is simmering cut your artichoke hearts into quarters and saute in a skillet with 1-2 Tbsp of olive oil a touch of salt and some red pepper flakes. Get the artichokes to sear and get nice and brown. This should not take long at all. Put aside to use as topping for plate of this pasta dish.)

9. Once sauce has simmered long enough and you are happy with it's consistency it is time to add the gorgonzola and parmesan cheeses to the sauce and stir. If you feel the sauce is now to thick and getting stringy with cheese just add some more white wine and raise the heat to high to bring to boil and then reduce to med. high and stir constantly. It should take about 2 minutes for the alcohol to cook out of the sauce mixture now.

10. Now it is time to take the saute pan of sauce and pour it into the pot of pasta that you have had on the back burner. So do so now. Mix the sauce well into the pasta on a medium heat for about 2 minutes and then it is time to plate the pasta on a large serving dish or charger. Top the pasta with remaining pistachios and arrange the artichokes any way you would like. Add additional red pepper flakes if desired and serve to your friends and family. Enjoy!

I also have a foodie friend named Sandy and she has a blog that is devoted to cooking and good food and she has some really good pasta recipes as well. Her blog is Easy Cooking With Sandy and what drew me to her site was a lovely Pasta and Sausage Salad. Go take a look I am sure you will like what you see!

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