This Fusilli Pasta Bake with Bacon and Zucchini is a great comfort meal! Tender pasta noodles wrapped up in a creamy Gouda cheese sauce with salty bacon, zucchini and red peppers. A dish you can made in advance, pop in the fridge and bake just before serving. A great mid week dinner for the whole family.
Comfort food at it’s best! Much like my Bowtie Pasta and Broccoli Bake and the Tomato & Mozzarella Baked Penne, this one’s a keeper! This was a cleaning out the fridge for lunch dish and it was delicious. Sometimes the tastiest dishes come from what’s left in the fridge. The addition of bacon gave this pasta dish a nice smoky flavour that I really loved. I don’t use bacon much at all, but was reminded of how much I like it!!!
What Is This Pasta Bake Like
- Difficulty – This recipe is pretty straightforward. There are several steps before it all comes together, but you can prep ahead and keep it in the fridge until baking time.
- Taste – I feel this dish is so comforting without being too over the top. It only has a small amount of bacon, but the flavour does shine through. Although, it does have cream and cheese, it isn’t overly creamy once it’s baked.
- Serving – This will make between 4 – 6 generous sized pasta servings.
Ingredients
- 10 oz fusilli pasta
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 medium Zucchini diced small
- 1 medium Red pepper diced small
- 4 Strips bacon cooked and roughly chopped
- 1 tesspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup pasta water
- 2 cups Gouda cheese grated
- Small bunch of fresh chopped parsley
NOTE, The full recipe and ingredient list can be found at the end of the post in the recipe card.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F/180 degrees C. Grease an 8 x 5 inch baking dish and set aside.
- Cook the pasta al dente and drain. Reserve one cup of the pasta water for making the sauce. Pour the cooked pasta into the baking dish and set aside.
- In a medium skillet set over medium heat, add the olive oil and garlic. Add the peppers and zucchini and cook stirring occasionally for about 8 minutes. Add the bacon, salt and pepper and stir well. Add the cooked vegetables to the pasta.
- In the same skillet you cooked the vegetables in, add the butter until it melts, about 1 minute. Add the heavy cream and pasta water. Turn the heat to high and whisk until it starts to bubble. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add fresh chopped parsley and cheese, reserving about 1/4 cup of the cheese. Stir the sauce until it’s smooth.
- Pour the sauce over the pasta and stir to incorporate it evenly. Top with remaining cheese. Bake for about 25 minutes until the top is golden and crisp.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool about 5 minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes
- Make ahead tips – You can make this dish up to about eight hours before baking. Just cover it and keep it in the fridge until baking. Add an extra 5 minutes to the baking time if making in advance.
- Cook pasta al dente – For baked pasta dishes, it’s best to cook the pasta until it has a bit of a bite to it. The Pasta will continue to cook in the sauce in the oven.
Substutions
- Pasta – I used fusilli pasta but pasta shells, penne pasta or bowtie pasta will all work well.
- Fresh parsley – Feel free to use dried parsley, oregano or basil. You could also add fresh basil.
- Gouda – I used Gouda cheese, but you could use pepper jack, mozzarella or cheddar cheese.
Serving
Pasta dishes go great with any kind of Salads like the Classic Caprese or the Roasted Red Pepper and Feta Salad. You could just serve it with a leafy green salad or just as it is. And pasta goes great with my all time favourite Garlic Knots.
Frequently Asked Questions
Although some recipes state you can put uncooked pasta into the oven, it’s a good idea to cook it before you add it to you baking dish. I like to cook it al dente so it still has a bit of a bite before baking. For firmer pasta, just cook the pasta halfway before adding to the baking dish.
If you want melty cheese on the top of you pasta dish, add it just about 10 minutes before the pasta dish is finished baking. For a crisper cheese topping, add the cheese at the beginning of the baking time.
Fusilli Pasta Bake with Bacon & Zucchini
Ingredients
- 10 oz fusilli pasta
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 medium Zucchini diced small
- 1 medium Red pepper diced small
- 4 Strips bacon cooked and roughly chopped
- 1 tesspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup pasta water
- 2 cups Gouda cheese grated
- Small bunch of fresh chopped parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F/180 degrees C. Grease an 8 x 5 inch baking dish and set aside.
- Cook the pasta al dente and drain. Reserve one cup of the pasta water for making the sauce. Pour the cooked pasta into the baking dish and set aside.
- In a medium skillet set over medium heat, add the olive oil and garlic. Add the peppers and zucchini and cook stirring occasionally for about 8 minutes. Add the bacon, salt and pepper and stir well. Add the cooked vegetables to the pasta.
- In the same skillet you cooked the vegetables in, add the butter until it melts, about 1 minute. Add the heavy cream and pasta water. Turn the heat to high and whisk until it starts to bubble. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add fresh chopped parsley and cheese, reserving about 1/4 cup of the cheese. Stir the sauce until it's smooth.
- Pour the sauce over the pasta and stir to incorporate it evenly. Top with remaining cheese. Bake for about 25 minutes until the top is golden and crisp.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool about 5 minutes before serving.
*A note on times provided: appliances vary, any prep and/or cook times provided are estimates only.
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