Kitchen notes · a little help before you start
Creamy farfalle with peas and bacon
Bowtie pasta with peas and bacon is an inviting dinner for a creamy-pasta mood. Little sweet peas sit against salty bacon, with Parmesan giving the sauce a savory finish. Fill a bowl while it is warm and enjoy the different bites caught among the bowties.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Total
- 35 min
- Original yield
- Serves 4
- Ingredients
- 7 listed
Make it part of your week
Recipe categories & planning details
- Meal type
- Main course · Sides
- Primary protein
- Pork
- Cuisine
- American · Italian
- Preparation & total time
- Prep: 15 minutes or less · Total: 31–60 minutes
A few quick notes
1. Drain the cooked bowties
Cook farfalle according to its package in salted water, then drain and keep it ready for the finished sauce.
2. Remove most bacon fat off heat
Brown the chopped bacon, take the skillet off the heat and use a paper towel to absorb most of the fat.
3. Let peas warm in the sauce
After the cream's first simmer, add peas and return to a simmer for their short cooking stage before Parmesan.
Get to know the ingredients
Chopped lean bacon
Chop the bacon before its hot skillet cook, then leave the browned pieces in the pan while removing most fat.
Thawed peas
If using frozen peas, thaw them first before adding to the simmered cream sauce for their brief cook.
Pressed garlic
Press the large clove before its short saute with the cooked bacon, just before adding cream.
Let’s make it
Choose your servings, then check things off as you go.
Original recipe: Serves 4. Original quantities shown.
Check ingredients as you prepare them. These checks stay on this page.
How to make it
0 of 6 steps completeMake room for Creamy farfalle with peas and bacon
Review ingredients in your pantry before anything is added. Meal plans use your household size; grocery-only additions use the servings selected above.
The last little job
Parsley in the final toss
Pour the finished Parmesan sauce over the drained pasta in its pot and stir in chopped parsley before serving.
A little more help as you go
Pasta and sauce can share prep time
Start the bacon while the farfalle cooks, keeping the drained pasta ready by the time the sauce is finished.
Parmesan follows the peas
Add the grated cheese after the peas have simmered in the cream, before pouring the sauce over pasta.
A few questions you might have
Does the bacon come out before garlic?
The browned bacon stays in the skillet after most fat is absorbed; return the pan to heat and add garlic.
Do the peas cook in the pasta water?
They simmer separately in the cream sauce after its initial reduction, before Parmesan is added and the sauce meets pasta.
Is the parsley only sprinkled on top?
The chopped parsley is stirred into the pasta after the sauce is poured over, spreading it through the finished dish.
Does the recipe use a baked cheese topping?
The Parmesan is added to the skillet sauce, and the finished dish is combined in the pasta pot without an oven stage.
When do I add heavy cream?
Add it after the pressed garlic's brief saute with the bacon, then simmer before adding peas and Parmesan.
Storage & reheating safety
For cooked, perishable leftovers, refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), using shallow containers for prompt cooling. Keep the refrigerator at 40°F or below, use refrigerated leftovers within 3–4 days, and reheat hot leftovers to 165°F, checked with a food thermometer. Follow any shorter package limit.
These are general safety limits, not a tested storage or freezing recommendation for this particular dish. USDA leftovers guidance · Safe cooking temperatures
Recipe source: natashaskitchen.com. Ingredient names and quantities may be adapted for the pantry.
Preparation notes follow the recipe shown here.
