Holy Smoked Bacon and Mushroom Penne

Good base recipe. But after reading the reivews about reduction and soggy bacon, I took the ingredients and did my own thing. Here's what I did: Crisped the bacon in a pan and removed. Dumped all but a Tbs of grease and fried mushrooms in pan for a minute. Added 1/4 cup of chicken stock and scraped up the bacon bits. Added broccoli* and garlic* and covered to steam veggies. Added very al dente pasta to pan and 1/2 cup more chicken stock. Reduced by half and finished w/ a dash of cream and some parmesan. Then I sprinkled the bacon on top and served with more parmesan. Soooo good.

My son and I LOVED this recipe! The only reason I am not giving it 5 stars is that my husband found it lacking in flavor (his taste buds must be on vacation). I did add onion as previously suggested. Next time I do think I will add some diced chicken and replace some of the broth with white wine to add some more flavor. Thanks for the post.

This was fanatastic. I was looking for a different pasta recipe to have for dinner and stumbled on this. I saw that Kez, a good friend made it and enjoyed it and decided I had to try it. I cooked the bacon first then took it out and added onion in with the 'shrooms and I used some roasted garlic I had on hand. After they began to get tender I added a bit of flour before I put the chicken broth in. I added the bacon back into it with the pasta and mixed in some Parmesan cheese. My hubby said next time add some asparagus I think that will be great! Thanks Onyx78 for sharing!

I was pleasantly surprised by this dish. I thought it might be a bit bland it wasn't. After reading the reviews I removed bacon and mushroom from the pan before adding the stock and used less of the stock, when the stock had reduced I put the bacon and mushrooms back and let it warm through. When serving I sprinkled a small amount of parmesan on top. My husband pulled faces when I told him what I was making but he enjoyed it more than I did and I liked it. Thanks

I didn't measure anything, just cooked and added as it looked right to me. I added chopped fresh shallot with the garlic and some fresh, baby spinach at the end. Humble, simple, but extremely delicious.

This was really good and easy to make. I added onion to the mushrooms. Definitely will make again. Thanks!

This was very tasty! I made it as-is, but would definitely follow some of the other readers comments next time. The reduction of the "sauce" (which wasn't a sauce, so don't be expecting that!) was the only ridiculous part of this recipe. There is no way that would have ever reduced to a few Tbsp. without turning my pasta to baby food. Here are the changes that I will make next time...1)I'm using MORE bacon...this is the main flavor in this dish, and we love bacon, so the more the merrier! 2) Either add flour or cornstarch to thicken the sauce or reduce the liquid. 3) A green veggie would be nice. I'm thinking the others had it right...either broccoli or asparagus. 4) Drain the bacon grease...at least drain most of it. 5) Remove the bacon and mushrooms after sauteeing and add them right before serving. I think after making these changes, we are definitely looking at a contender for a simple, easy, relatively inexpensive winner!

did add celery, onions, chicken and garlic.. yummy!!

I thoroughly enjoyed this dish, as did my husband and step daughter. I made a few minor adjustments. I added chopped onion and instead of 3 cups of chicken stock, I put 2 cups of beef stock and 1 cup of water. People were complaining of a lack of seasoning, so I added garlic and onion powders. Also, instead of Parmesan cheese, I put Mozzarella cheese. Turned out great, can't wait to make it again.

Very good. This wasn't yet review when I tried it so I was scared...but very happy with the end results. I used Peppered Bacon, 2 cups homemade turkey broth and less pasta. It turned out great and I was pleased how the pasta soaked up all the flavor while it simmered.

I think this could have turned out better if it wasn't all mixed together and simmered until the stock was reduced, the bacon and mushrooms lost their crispiness from being sauteed and the pasta got mushy. And I only used 2 of the 3 cups of stock. I also added a lot more Parmesan cheese to thicken the sauce up a little bit. Concept was good, just didn't turn out as well as I expected.

This is a tasty recipe. I didn't use as much cheese as it called for, but the flavor was plentiful. Next time I'll try a different pasta.

I had a very similar dish at a local Italian restaurant in our community. In addition to the bacon and mushroom added chicken, sundried tomatoes and served it with a sage brown butter sauce(fresh sage, chicken broth and butter) It was to die for and left me with a fullness that was very light and comfortable. Absolutely delicious..

If I could give this recipe ten stars I would. My wife loves this dish, and I think she'd eat it once a week if she could. This is comfort food at its best.

Bland - I ended up adding an alfredo sauce

I don't think I made the same recipe you all did, I was very dissapointed in this! I love bacon/mushrooms/penne so I thought this would be great. I just didn't enjoy this. Sorry, won't make this again!

This was a really good and simple meal. Very light and tasty. I made it pretty much as written except I added more garlic. I agree with cookinme that asparagus would be a wonderful addition, and I also think that next time I would replace some of the chicken stock with white wine. Thanks for the recipe!

This recipe is not great. I made adjustments as other reviews suggested. I added onions, chicken, and celery. I took out the previously cooked food before I added the stock so that they wouldn't get soggy. But the recipe still tasted like it was missing something. I wouldn't make this recipe again.

I took the ladies suggestions and cooked the bacon, removed it, browned the chicken, removed it, added mushrooms, store bought roasted garlic, added the 2 cups chicken stock, one cup white wine, 3/4# penne pasta, some red pepper flakes cooked for 5 minutes, put broccolli in 5 minutes, put chicken back in, cooked about 5 minutes until sauce was absorbed, sprinkled bacon on top and served. Parmesan cheese on the table. Didn't think it would be great, but it was delicous, one pot meal.

My family loved this recipe. My husband said he would eat this all of the time and he kept going back for more. Even my 2 year old twins ate it. I followed the actual recipe. It's even good as leftovers.

we really enjoyed this. added chopped onions, drained the grease from pan and added some garlic. will be making this again!

This was better than I expected for such few ingredients. changes 1) turkey bacon not regular bacon makes this recipe a bit more artery friendly 2) I added cabbage that I had left over and it was really tasty!! 3) whole wheat penne Not a for company recipe- but a very good week night meal.

I prepared this recipe as written and my family and I thought it was bland. Not worth making again.

I had high hopes for this recipe based on the other reviews, but for some reason it just didn't work for me. The 3 cups of broth took FOREVER to boil off, even on the highest setting, and I ended up with very watery tasting pasta, mushrooms & bacon. I followed the recipe exactly but wont' be making this again.

We enjoyed this very much! I did make some of the suggested changes - 2 cups of chicken broth and 1/2 cup of white wine, and I undercooked everything so it would finish cooking as the sauce reduced. By keeping the heat on medium, the didn't take long to reduce at all. Really gorgeous flavor. Thanks!

I was pretty pleased with this. I added green onion to it. Doubled the "sauce" part and threw in some corn starch to thicken it at the end. My wife prefers thick sauces. I thought it was great. While I couldn't taste the "smoked" flavor of the bacon throughout the pasta, I did when I ate it :) And yes cutting the bacon up before you start is a must. I did that and had no problems but I can imagine it would have been a tad messy if I hadn't. Did not notice too much grease in it either. I took a 1lb package of bacon and used exactly half of it. Turned out perfect I thought. My daughter had 3rds, my son ate every bit of a huge helping. That told me plenty. I will make this again. Thanks!

Yummy! I thought the finished product tasted like something from Olive Garden. It was very easy and inexpensive since I already had most of the ingredients. I only changed a couple of things. I used 1/3 pkg of bacon and drained about half the grease. It still had plenty of flavor. There was a lot of liquid so I turned up the heat really high to boil it off quickly, and I added some cornstarch dissolved in cold water at the end as I didn't want to wait. Next time I will add the cornstarch earlier and make a saucier meal. This would be great with chicken breasts in it too!

I thought this was really good. The only change I made was to remove the bacon and mushrooms from the grease before adding broth, so as to keep the bacon and mushrooms from getting too soggy.

After cooking the bacon drain off a small amount of the grease - also take the bacon out and crumble over the top of the pasta with the parmesan (stays crispy this way) I add sun dried tomatoes and some fresh chopped spinach - add onions too - AWESOME!!

Easy, tasty, will prepare again:) I added onion to enhance the flavour and I also added some flour to aid in the thickening of the sauce. This was quite good. Thanks for the idea!

Although delicous, too much bacon grease in the pasta.

Yummy, yummy recipe!! To make the recipe a little easier I add uncooked pasta directly to the cooked bacon and mushroom mixture, cover and steam for about 20 minutes. At this time I also add some broccoli. Yummy!

Excellent! I couldn't believe how much flavor the penne picks up from the liquid. However, I would further recommend lean bacon, and if chicken stock isn't abailable, try mixing chicken boullion with 3C hot water; you won't have to use salt, if you add the right amount of boullion to water.

Good pasta dish. I had to add a little Wondra to thicken the sauce.

this was excellent...I added baby spinach to the mixture...cooks quickly....company loved it...I made days ahead and just had to warm it up when family came!!!

After reading the other reviews, I made the following changes: In a skillet, I cooked the bacon with 1 chopped onion, then added the garlic & mushrooms (turkey bacon, so no draining needed). In another pot, I cooked the pasta in a blend of 3 cans of chicken broth, 1T. olive oil, and 1 t. liquid smoke. When the pasta was cooked, almost all of the liquid was absorbed (about 16 min.). I then stirred in 1/2 lb. of fresh grated parmesan and the bacon blend. Easy and delicious!

It was very good... I added some onions into it and also used turkey bacon because that's what I had on hand. I found that I needed to add more olive oil in order for the pasta to be coated but overall very good.

I made this recipe the same way. My husband love it. He would have it again. Cindy

We really enjoyed this recipe. It was easy to make and tasty too. I cooked the bacon in the microwave to try to reduce the amount of grease left in the pan. I also cooked the garlic in olive oil first, then added the bacon and mushrooms to that. Then, I added 2 cups of chicken broth and 1 c (or so) of white wine. I did find that the mixture took a very long time to reduce... I just mixed it all in when the pasta was done. So, our sauce was a little watery. Thanks, Onyx!

I made this last night and it turned out great. I would just add a reminder to cut the bacon into pieces before cooking. I'd make it again.

This dish is DELICIOUS!!! It is now my boyfriends favorite. I sprinkled some chopped green onions on top and added crushed red pepper for a little flavor. I get request for this pasta all the time.

LOVED IT! Used egg noodles instead of Penne so had to strain out some of the juices at the end but it was worth it!

Disappointing at best. Too rich.

We were disappointed with this recipe! Thought it would turn out great but it didn't! 3 cups of chicken stock is way too much! Will give it another try with only 2 cups of chicken stock

this was a good recipe except that i made a few changes. i added some chopped onions and used turkey bacon instead of regular bacon.

I little too salty and not sure the ingredients worked well together.

Although my husband liked this recipe I found it pretty bland and watery. Would probably only make again if I had a lot of mushrooms I wanted to get rid of.

This wasn't bad and maybe with some fine tuning it could be a keeper. But I made it as written with the exception of all the bacon grease. Just doesn't quite make the 4 or 5 star level.

I did enjoy this but do have to agree the bacon flavor was a little lost in the end. (I even kept the grease). also added frozen asparagus to the pasta, but I had to simmer the sauce for at least 10 minutes so it was mushy. I added the parmesean to the pasta when finished then served with more. Made the sauce thicken a little more. this is what i expected it to be...good.

I wasn't all that impressed with this.My biggest complaint with this is the greasiness...even after draining all the bacon grease.The flavor was there but little else.If it wasn't for the bacon,this would be really bland.I doubt that I'll be making this again.

Tasty combination of flavors. I think my mouth was looking for a cream-based sauce to round this out, so maybe next time I'll add some heavy cream to the sauce when it's reducing. Really good as written though.

Absolutely amazing! I added shredded Gouda to it and it turned out great!

This was a nice quick meal. I cooked the pasta, then the bacon/shroom/garlic/(and I added) onion mixture. To that I added 2 cups broth. I combined 2 Tbs of cornstarch in a 1/2 cup white wine and added that. When thickened, toss with the pasta. Nothing came out soggy for me. Seasoned with S&P and parmesan. Delish!

Delicious, I would suggest a thicker sauce though and more spices.

I used only the ingredients listed, with one exception - I did not have fresh bacon on hand, but I had a package of cooked bacon pieces. I added them in after cooking the garlic and mushrooms in olive oil. After reading the reviews, and the concern about the amount of liquid, I channeled my younger (read: hamburger helper) days, and added the pasta raw, covered and reduced the heat, and simmered until the pasta was cooked. The liquid had reduced to 3-4 thickened tablespoons or so. The flavor of this dish is really good, even without the bacon grease adding flavor! Can't wait to make it again when I have fresh bacon to use. Very good recipe, thanks!

This was pretty good. I did change it a bit the second time I made it by adding onion, broccoli and chicken, instead of penne. It's a mix of textures, so it's quite interesting.

This recipe received rave reviews at my house. I added onions as well. Great flavor!

This was a waste of good bacon. Don't know if we have a different flavor in our smoked bacon here in TN, but the flavor from the bacon was lost some where in the pasta? We salvaged the pasta by adding Marinara sause and chicken.

This was certainly full of foods I love but for some reason the flavors just didn't come together.

This just didn't do it for us. I thought it was OK, maybe a 3, but my wife would give it a 1, and only because no zero is available. She took two or three bites and said, "I just can't eat this."