Penne e Spinaci (Yes, This One Has Bacon In It Too!)

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Ever since I heard of Bacon Parties, I've been on a kick with sneaking bacon into recipes!

But this is one that didn't require any sneaking, it already had bacon in it. It's also my first ever attempt to recreate a recipe from a dish I ate in a restaurant.

We've eaten this dish, called Rigatoni e Spinache, at a little local Italian restaurant twice now. It's sort of like a warm spinach pasta salad, and oh so good. And when I had a craving for it last week, but didn't feel like going out, I instead decided to buy the ingredients and try it for myself, since luckily the restaurant lists out what is in the dish in their online menu. I couldn't find rigatoni at the store, so I used penne instead (And interestingly enough, the only difference between the two is that penne has angle cut ends. I swear, I'm learning something new every day that I attempt to cook.)

And although it was a little stressful to make, because everything has to cook at and be done at basically the same time, then all be combined at the end, it turned out fabulously! I think this might just be my husband's new favorite dish I've made--he even went back for seconds, which he never does. And my favorite part is that this dish is all you need to make for a dinner, it's like a salad and pasta in one!

Ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat penne
1/4 small package walnut pieces
5 large garlic cloves
1 1/2 tablespoons margarine
5 slices of bacon
1/2 jar roasted red peppers, minus the juice (or use 1/3rd of a real red pepper, which I would have if they'd been available at the store)
3 tablespoons garlic infused olive oil
3 tablespoons crumbled gorgonzola cheese
1/2 bag baby spinach (about 2 cups)
salt and pepper to taste

Directions: (that I totally just made up and hope they make sense!)
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees
- Boil pot of water for penne, and cook for 8-10 minutes
- Melt 1 tablespoon of margarine in small pot with walnuts, saute for 2-3 minutes
- Cover baking sheet with foil, spread out walnuts, bake for 8-10 minutes
- Peel and chop garlic cloves, saute in 1/2 tablespoon of margarine
- Once garlic is sauteed and starting to brown, add chopped red peppers and continue to saute for a couple of minutes
- Cook 5 strips of bacon in pan, once cooked, save grease, pat dry on a paper towel and crumble
- Add 3 tablespoons of olive oil to garlic and red pepper pan, let heat for a few minutes (I also - added about 1/4 teaspoon of the bacon grease for extra flavor)
- Drain penne once cooked, pour into a serving bowl
- Add garlic, red pepper and oil mixture to bowl, with walnuts, crumbled bacon and gorgonzola, and toss
- Add the baby spinach and salt and pepper to taste as the last step, and toss for a minute or two to warm the spinach
- Serve right away while still warm

(Mmmm, bacon chunks!)

This made about 3 servings, and when I added it all up, it is about 468 calories per serving. Which isn't too bad considering we ate it as our whole meal, not just as the main dish!

Have you ever attempted to recreate a dish you've had at a restaurant before? Did it turn out to be a good match the first time, or did you have to tweak it over time?