Tortellini Spinach Bake in Creamy Lemon Sauce

As the weather heats up in Arizona, I find myself craving citrus fruits, lighter salads, fresh fruits and veggies....and so forth

So when I saw blah blah spinach blah blah lemon sauce, I perked up.   That sounds light and delicious and perfect for summer.

But then I saw the bacon....

I knew Matt would be intrigued.

It turns out that it was less "light and summery" and more comfort food.  But I digress.   All that I care about was that it was 1- a hit.   My kids ooohed and ahhed, but only after they finished 1/2 the bowl.  2-It was a great dish to make ahead and heat up for after church.  Perfect!  My kids are usually ravenous by the time they make it home.  We leave at 11 for the 1130 service, but don't get home till 3:30.  Serious starvation is about to happen by then.

I confess that I used more bacon than required.  As I mentioned, Matt loves bacon.   Plus we had a 1/2 lb in the fridge that needed to be used up since we are leaving for 2 weeks.

I also used cream instead of just milk.   Another case of using it up...but it wasn't much.  

I also doubled the garlic.  I love garlic.  My kids do too!

The red pepper flakes were tempered by the creamy sauce, so definitely feel free to use more! We are not spicy eaters (at least the kids are not) and it was mild with 1/4 tsp.

I didn't measure the lemon zest or juice....I like lemon too!  I just used it all.

I could throw in a bit more spinach too.....up the healthy part....

If you are in a hurry because blood sugar is low...you can nuke it for faster consumption!

Anyway, here is another hit from Our Best Bites.

Tortellini Spinach Bake in Creamy Lemon Sauce
Recipe by Our Best Bites

12 oz bag Barilla Cheese & Spinach Tortelini (find them in the dry pasta aisle)
4 oz bacon or pancetta, (about 4 strips bacon)*
3 cloves garlic, pressed in garlic press or finely minced
2 Tbs flour
2 C milk
¾ tsp kosher salt
⅛ tsp black pepper
1 1/2 tsp dry basil
¼ tsp red pepper flakes (1/2 tsp or more if you like spicy)
1 medium lemon
2 C loosely packed fresh spinach, roughly chopped
¾ C grated mozzarella cheese, divided
¾ C grated Parmesan cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Fill a large stock pot with water and bring to a boil.  Add tortellini and cook according to package instructions.

Place bacon in a medium sized skillet on the stove-top at medium-high heat.  Cook until crisp.  Remove bacon from pan with slotted spoon and set on paper towels to drain.  Reserve two tablespoons bacon drippings in pan and discard the rest.  Add garlic to pan and cook until fragrant and tender, about 1 minute.  Add flour to pan and stir with a whisk for about 1 minute. Slowly add milk and continue to stir with whisk until smooth.  Add salt, pepper, basil, and red pepper flakes and bring sauce to a simmer.

While sauce is heating, use a microplane grater or a fine-holed cheese grater to zest lemon.  Then cut lemon in half and remove juice.  Add 2 teaspoons zest and 1 tablespoon lemon juice to sauce.  Continue to stir until thickened, 2-3 minutes.  Remove from heat.

Drain tortellini and place back in stock pot.  Reserve 1 tablespoon of the cooked bacon and add the rest to the pasta mixture.  Add spinach, 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese.  Add sauce and gently stir to combine.  Place pasta mixture in an 8×8 or 9×9 baking dish and top with remaining 1/4 cup mozarella and 1/4 cup parmesan and also crumbled bacon.

Cover pan with foil and bake for 20 minutes.  Remove foil and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, until cheese on top is melted and pasta is bubbly throughout.  Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes before serving.

* For a vegetarian meal, omit bacon.

Serves 4-6

And all the credit goes to....