Creamy Stove-Top Alfredo with Bacon and Green Beans #SundaySupper

As the days get cooler (and I use that term lightly here in Los Angeles) we tend to seek foods that are comforting and warm.

Today's Sunday Supper is all about warming trends. With temps still in the upper 80's and 90's around here, I'm going to define "warming trends" as being warmed from the soul.

Alfredo seems to do that for me.

It took a while for it to dawn on me that my most favorite Italian dish is anything Alfredo. A nice warm plate of creamy Alfredo and pasta, with or without meat and vegetables just makes me happy. Add bacon to the mix and we have ourselves a whole new level of yum!

That brings me to this lovely, super easy, one skillet, soul warming dish.

Creamy Stove-Top Alfredo with Bacon and Green Beans #SundaySupper

Inspired by Better Homes and Garden magazine "One-Pan Recipes"
Printable Version

4 slices thick-sliced bacon, coarsely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
8 oz pasta, uncooked (recommended: rigatoni, penne, rotini)
1 cup green beans, cut into bite-sized pieces
14.5 oz chicken broth
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 - 1/3 cup cream (I used half and half)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Garnish:
grated Parmesan cheese
Crumbled, crisp-cooked bacon

Before I get started, I always like to get all of the ingredients prepared and measured. Makes the whole process of cooking run so much smoother.

In a very large skillet, cook the bacon over medium heat until nice and crispy. Add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Drain off the fat (I left a little in there for flavor) and add the pasta, green beans, chicken broth, water, salt and pepper.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the pasta is tender, stirring once. 

Stir in the cream and cheese. Cook and stir for 2 minutes to heat things through and get the cheese all melted. 

Garnish with more cheese and bacon crumbles if desired and serve. 

Below you'll find over 40 recipes that are sure to warm you up, whether its from the inside out, or from the soul.

Beverages

• Drunken Pumpkin Spice Latte by Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
• Hot Mulled Caramel Apple Sangria by The Crumby Cupcake
• Mexican Atole by Curious Cuisiniere
• Gluten Free Hot Spiked Apple Cider by Gluten Free Crumbley

Desserts

• Apple Pear Crisp by The Freshman Cook
• Bananas Foster by Pies and Plots
• Chocolate Hazelnut Lava Cake by Brunch with Joy
• Fudge Pudding Cake by Cosmopolitan Cornbread
• Honeycrisp Apple Tart by The Redhead Baker
• Pumpkin Cheesecake in Pumpkins by Desserts Required
• Warm Cardamom and Coconut Rice Pudding by Fearless Dining

Main Dishes and Soups

• Beef Brats and Beans Soup by Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Beef Pot Pie with Herbed Biscuits by From Gate to Plate
• Best Ever White Bean and Mushroom Soup by Pancake Warriors
• Braised Venison with Plums by Food Lust People Love
• Butternut Squash Chili by Amee's Savory Dish
• Butternut Squash Risotto with Pears and Sage by The Wimpy Vegetarian
• Carbonnade Flamande by Tara's Multicultural Table
• Classic Italian Meat Sauce by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Creamy Cauliflower Broccoli Cheese Soup by Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• Hearty Chickpea Soup by The Food Hunter's Guide to Cuisine
• Creamy Stove-Top Alfredo with Bacon and Green Beans by Peaceful Cooking
• Crockpot Creamy Chicken and Noodles by Confessions of a Cooking Diva
• Curry Debal by Palatable Pastime
• Easy Sweet Potato Soup by Healing Tomato
• Easy Zuppa Toscana Soup Copycat by Fantastical Sharing of Recipes
• French Onion Soup by Grumpy's Honeybunch
• Gingered Butternut Squash Soup by Noshing With The Nolands
• Hearty Turkey Lentil Soup by A Gouda Life
• Hearty Vegetable Beef Soup by Party Food and Entertaining
• Mango Habanero Sauce by What Smells So Good?
• Oxtail Stew by Nosh My Way
• Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting by Serena Bakes Simply from Scratch
• Red Lentil Soup by My San Francisco Kitchen
• Roasted Squash Soup by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Turkey Enchilada Casserole with Salsa Verde by Food Done Light
• Slow Cooker English Roast by Wholistic Woman
• Slow Cooker Lamb Rogan Josh by Caroline's Cooking
• Easy Slow Cooker Pot Roast with Mushroom Gravy by Feeding Big
• Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili by Renee's Kitchen Adventures
• Spice Rubbed Braised Beef by FamFriendsFood
• Spicy Meatball Tortilla Soup by The Weekend Gourmet
• Sweet Potato Soup with Bacon by Cooking Chat
• Turkey Chipotle Chili by The Complete Savorist
• Tuscan White Bean Soup with Ham by Big Bear's Wife

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Buttermilk Skillet Cake with Pecan Praline Topping

This week for the the Joy the Baker Cookbook Spotlight and Cook-Off sponsored by Hyperion and hosted at girlichef we got to choose what ever recipe we wanted to show you all. This recipe caught my eye on several levels........

I have a thing for cast iron skillets.

I have a thing for praline.

I have a thing for buttermilk in baking recipes.

And now...I have a very serious thing for this recipe alone. Ooh....MY....gawd! This cake is flippin' amazing. Light, fluffy....not too sweet because the praline has that roll. And it does it well! The scale is going to be yelling at me if I don't stop eating it.

If you end up purchasing Joy's cookbook....you'll find the recipe on page 113, titled Buttermilk Skillet Cake with Walnut Praline Topping.  I happen not to like walnuts. So I automatically swap them for pecans whenever called for in a recipe.

Buttermilk Skillet Cake with Pecan Praline Topping
Printable Version

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
6 TB unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup buttermilk

Praline Topping:
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
good pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans (or walnuts if that's your thing)

Preheat your oven to 375' F. Grease and flour an 8" over safe (ie: cast iron) skillet, along the bottom and up the sides. Joy says a 9" cake pan will work as well. Don't make up your mind yet....please.

I want you to see how big...errr...small an 8" skillet is. You'll see in a minute the importance of this.

In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In another medium bowl, with a stand or hand mixer, cream together the granulated sugar and butter until fully incorporated, about 3 minutes.

Add the egg and yolk, one at a time, beating for 1 minute between the two.

Beat in the vanilla.

Now....with the mixer on low, add half of the flour. Beat until incorporated. Add the buttermilk, and beat again until incorporated. Finally, beat in the remaining flour until almost fully incorporated. Stop beating and continue with a spatula to fully incorporate the flour.

Pour / spoon the batter into your prepared pan.

Smooth the batter in the pan evenly. (clears her throat)....put a pan on the bottom rack. Just in case. Bake for 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

While things of unknown magnitude are going on in the oven....you should make the pralines.

Combine the brown sugar, butter, cream and salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a soft boil and let boil for 3 minutes. Keep an eye on it. It likes to get a little rambunctious....just stir it down.

After 3 minutes, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and nuts. Allow to set for about 20 minutes to thicken up a bit.

I don't know why....something I did maybe? Or just one of those quirks...but (clears her throat)...I had a bit of a mishap.

I'm really glad that pan was in there to catch the mess. At first I was fretting a bit. But then I decided to let it ride. I turned the oven down to 350' and let it cook a bit longer since the center wasn't set yet. And hoped that my house wouldn't be inundated with that burned sugary smell.

Once I had determined (with aforementioned toothpick test) that he cake was done,  I let it cool for a minute and then placed the pan on a plate.

It needed examining. How was I going to pull this off? Scrap it and start over? I have a thing about throwing away perfectly good food. So that thought didn't linger long. I considered cutting off all the crunchy edges (oh the pain of the thought) and inverting the pan so the cake would come out. but I knew I'd mess it up even more.

I decided to....embrace the rustic. Forget the perfection and clean beauty of the intention. And just pour the praline over the whole thing....skillet and all

And then discovered the raw beauty that only a cast iron skillet can pull off with such comfort.

What happened next was pure taste-bud nirvana

I want to say....you should probably cook this cake in a 10" skillet or a cake pan. But there's a part of me that has a thing for this bad boy.....just as it is.