Spaghetti in White Sauce with Bacon, Peas and Mushrooms

My family loves this easy winter one dish meal. I make a large batch of it, and the leftovers are gone the next day. It’s comfort food: hearty, delicious, easy to make, easy to eat, and easy to love.

I use frozen peas, but you could use fresh peas if you have them available in the spring. I wouldn’t want to waste fresh peas on this dish because their delicate flavor gets drowned out by the salty-sweet bacon. I use spaghetti, but it works well with other pasta shapes. I pair it with a salad, because I like to eat fresh greens with every meal, but my kids claim the peas count as greens, so the salad often goes uneaten.

I usually cook the bacon first, then use the bacon fat to make the bechamel. If I’m in a hurry, I make the bechamel while the bacon is cooking, in which case I use olive or avocado oil. Bacon fat makes the bechamel taste better, but it can be a little heavy and bacon-y.

Making this dish in a hurry is a bit of a juggling act, requiring four pans, but if you time it all right, you can have dinner on the table in 30 minutes. Once you’ve gotten the hang of making bechamel sauce, which requires your undivided attention for about 7 to 9 minutes, you’ve got this.

Print Recipe

Spaghetti in White Sauce with Bacon, Peas and Mushrooms

By Springhouse Turtle – Serves: 4-5

Prep Time: 15 minutes – Cooking Time: 15 minutes – Total Time: 30 minutes

Hearty, rich and satisfying, this one-dish meal is an easy-to-make favorite with my family. The only tricky part is the bechamel sauce, but once you've gotten that down, you can get dinner on the table in half an hour.

Ingredients

• 2 cups bechamel (white) sauce
• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 1 pound bacon, cut into 1" pieces
• 4 ounces mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1 pound frozen peas
• 1 pound gluten-free spaghetti

Instructions

1

Cook the spaghetti in a large pot of salted water until it is al dente. When it's done, drain, rinse it under cold water and return it to the cooking pot. Gluten-free spaghetti usually takes 7-9 minutes to cook at a simmer. Watch very carefully for the last minute or two. It's easy to overcook gluten-free spaghetti.

2

Meanwhile, heat the milk for the bechamel sauce until it is steaming, not quite simmering.

3

White the milk and water are heating, saute the bacon until it's light brown in a large skillet with a lid, about 8-10 minutes.

4

Use a slotted spoon to remove the bacon to a plate or bowl.

5

Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat from the skillet.

6

In a 2 quart saucepan, use the rest of the bacon fat to make the bechamel sauce.

7

Saute the onions in the 2 tablespoons of bacon fat in the skillet on medium heat until the onions are translucent, about 5 or 6 minutes.

8

Add the mushrooms, salt and pepper to the skillet and saute until they are wilted, about 2-4 minutes.

9

Add the frozen peas, stir until they are thoroughly mixed.

10

Stir in the bechamel sauce and heat through on low heat.

11

Add the sauce to the drained spaghetti, mix well and serve immediately.

Cook the bacon:

Until it’s light brown:

Cook the onions in bacon fat:

Add the mushrooms:

Cook until the mushrooms are wilted and browned:

Add the frozen peas:

Add the bechamel:

Then add the cooked bacon:

The finished sauce, ready to mix with cooked pasta:

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