I know we’ve all added various cream cheeses to pastas before but this particular combination is something that pains me slightly to divulge as it has been a personal love affair since my mum first made this for us. A dish that pleases all, and can be made vegetarian easily with the exclusion of bacon. I once made enough of this pasta (with help from the lovely Leyla) to fill 2 huge woks at uni and it went down a treat. Reasonably cheap to make, although Boursin in Australia is ridiculously expensive so I substitute it for a garlic roulade cheese at times…..go Boursin though, if your wallet permits.

That’s it really, I hope you enjoy.

Ingredients Serves 2 – Can easily be altered to feed more people

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 baby courgettes, chopped into cubes
• 1 large onion or 2-3 shallots, chopped small (this can be left out, if you wish)
• 5 rashers of thick cut smoky bacon, chopped
• 80g Boursin or other good quality soft, garlic cream cheese
• About 4 tbsp double cream
• Enough pasta for 2 (I normally use farfalle, bow pasta) but any pasta shape will do
• 1 handful of chopped chives to scatter on top

Method

Get a large pan of salted water on the stove to boil. Chop the courgettes, onion and bacon so it’s all ready to go and snip the chives with kitchen scissors into a small bowl.

Add your pasta to the boiling water and put on a timer for 10 minutes (or according to packet instructions).

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large frying pan over med-high heat and add the cubed courgettes. Stir occasionally until browned and spoon onto kitchen paper, leaving to one side.

Add another tbsp of oil to pan and fry the onion over a medium heat for about 3-5 minutes until golden and softened then add the chopped bacon and continue to fry until the bacon is browned at the edges.

Add the soft cheese and break up with a wooden spoon to help it melt for a minute or two then add your cream and stir everything together until the soft cheese has completely melted into the sauce. Now add the courgettes and stir to heat – season with pepper.

When the pastas cooked, drain and add to the pan with the sauce, mix together (adding more cream if you like) and serve scattered with the chives.

I hope you enjoy this as much as we do!