Pasta with Garlic Crumbs

Well, tonight I made Pasta with Garlic Crumbs (it's actually called Rigatoni with Garlic Crumbs but I used Farfalle since I didn't have Rigatoni) and of course we had asparagus again. Hehehe

So here's the recipe, it's from my Pasta cookbook.

Pasta with Garlic Crumbs, it's a little spicy

-3 Tablespoons olive oil
-2 shallots, chopped
-8 strips lean bacon (I used smoked, YUM), chopped (this is an optional ingredient but I think it's a must)
-2 teaspoons crushed dried red chilies (otherwise known as crushed red peppers and you might want to use less or none at all if you don't like a little kick)
-14 ounce can chopped tomatoes with garlic and herbs (I didn't have this either so I used a can of plum tomatoes that I chopped and added garlic powder and italian seasoning)
-6 slices white bread
-1/2 cup butter
-2 garlic cloves, chopped
-1 pound rigatoni (or whatever pasta you want to use)
-salt and ground pepper (I didn't add either so as not to add any more sodium and it really doesn't need the pepper)

1-Heat the oil in a medium saucepan and fry the shallots and bacon, if using (which you should be :-), gently for 6-8 minutes until golden. Add the dried chilies and chopped tomatoes, half-cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

2-Meanwhile, cut the crusts off the bread and discard them. Reduce the bread to crumbs in a blender or food processor.

3-Heat the butter in a frying pan, add the garlic and bread crumbs and stir-fry until golden and crisp. (Don't let the crumbs catch and burn or the final result will be ruined.)

4-Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water (again I didn't use the salt), according to the instructions on the package, until al dente. Drain well.

5-Toss the pasta with the tomato sauce and divide among four or six warmed serving plates.

6-Sprinkle with the crumbs and serve immediately.

It was amazing!!!! And of course I made the asparagus like I did last time. :-)

I will be blogging about a cake soon but I can't spill any of the secrets until it's done and gone because it's a seeeeecret. :-D

Enjoy!!!