Reviewed: Nov. 19, 2011

Stunningly delicious. Truly beyond the ordinary pasta side dish. Smooth, velvety rich, uniquely flavorful and elegant comfort food. So good it was memorable. Be sure to save some of the pasta cooking water to moisten the pasta if it absorbs too much of the sauce. And don't be afraid to add more cream if necessary. Served this with Caper Baked Chicken and Marilyn's Green Beans Italiano, both recipes also from this site.

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Reviewer:

naples34102

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Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA

Living In: Mequon, Wisconsin, USA

Reviewed: Oct. 18, 2011

This is one of our family's favorite recipes! We fix it often. We do prefer a more delicate bow-tie pasta to the penne, and I add a shallot just before the mushrooms and a teaspoon or so of salt to the sauce at the end.

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Reviewer:

DianeS

Reviewed: Oct. 8, 2011

I came across this recipe on September 22. I've made it three times so far....that's how easy it is and that's how good it is. My husband and I eat out quite a bit and at some really good Italian restaurants. This recipe is every bit as good as any of the dishes I've eaten at these restaurants. I accidentally left the grease from the panchetta in the pan the first time I made it so now I stick to that I also add some chopped sun-dried tomatoes to give it a bit of a kick. My mouth is watering just thinking about it again.

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Reviewer:

mikes wife

Reviewed: Apr. 29, 2011

I just loved this recipe! I did add more of the cream to make it more saucier, and it came out GREAT! I didnt have the Pancetta but used some left over pepper salami, proscuitto left over from a family gathering, and it turned out very very tasty.

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Reviewer:

vleigh007

Reviewed: Feb. 4, 2011

I really enjoyed this dish. The pancetta went really well with the baby bella mushrooms I used.

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Reviewer:

gretcheepoo

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Hammond, Indiana, USA

Reviewed: Dec. 17, 2010

A very easy, very flavorful dish! this seriously took like 20 minutes and most of that was waiting for the water to boil. Very pleased with the results, I will be making this again!!! The only suggestion I have is if you are thinking of making it with whole wheat pasta, I wouldn't. We made it with whole wheat penne and the sauce was not think enough to cover the slightly grainy texture. I also threw in a can of drained Italian diced tomatoes, really gave it a nice sweet kick.

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Reviewer:

mom_of_2

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Independence, Oregon, USA

Reviewed: Dec. 7, 2010

This was absolutely delicious!! My husband had 3 servings and said it could quite possibly be the best thing I've ever made. My kids loved it too! I came across this recipe because I had cream and bacon I needed to use up and this was perfect. I used regular bacon because it's what I had, cooked it in the microwave (crispy) and just crumbled it in when I was mixing it all together at the end. I doubled the sauce and I think that's a must. There can't possibly be enough without it unless you use half as much pasta. I also threw in an extra 1/2 tsp. of basil and added a package of shortcuts chicken to make it a more complete meal. Some garlic bread on the side and it was a hit! I'm already looking forward to the leftovers for lunch.

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Reviewer:

Kim L.

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Reviewed: Nov. 30, 2010

Besides using some of the pancetta grease to saute the mushrooms, didn't change a thing. This is awsome.

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Reviewer:

Stephanie

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Bathurst, New Brunswick, Canada

Living In: Bracebridge, Ontario, Canada

Reviewed: Oct. 21, 2010

Everything we love (pasta, bacon and mushrooms) in one dish! This was prepared and on the table in under 30 minutes. I used what I had on hand - linguini in place of the penne, bacon for the pancetta and added 1 seeded and chopped Roma tomato at the very end for a little freshness. I also used half baby bella and half white mushrooms. Freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano put it over the top. My only complaint is that if I had not prepared 1 1/2 times the sauce, it would have been too dry for us. Flavorful comfort food that will prepared often. Thanks for sharing!

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Reviewer:

abapplez

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Annandale, Virginia, USA

Living In: Spotsylvania, Virginia, USA

Reviewed: Oct. 7, 2010

This was delicious. There's no such thing as heavy cream up here in Canada, so I used whipping cream. It didn't thicken up though, so I just put a little flour in a bowl and whisked it with some cream and then whisked that into my sauce in the skillet. It thickened up beautifully and turned our perfect! I will definitely be making this again. Thanks for the great recipe! I added a picture of my finished product, check it out. :D

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