Bacon, tomato, spinach & ricotta linguine recipe

Bacon, tomato, spinach & ricotta linguine is a great weekday family meal, and it only takes a few minutes to make.

With only a handful of ingredients, all lightly and simply cooked, this recipe is so easy to make. It's always popular - there's so much flavour from the bacon and sundried tomatoes, and the creaminess of the ricotta is the perfect complement. Plus you only need a little of each ingredient, so it's not expensive, even for a family of four. In fact, it's one of our best cheap family meals - excellent for students or families on a budget. We've used linguine because the long, slightly flattened strands are good with the creamy sauce, but you can use any kind you have to hand. 

Ingredients

• 12 rashers of smoked back bacon
• 200-250g (8-10oz) linguine
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 red onions
• 5 sundried tomatoes
• 200g (8oz) ricotta cheese
• 100g (4oz) fresh spinach

Method

1. Cook the linguine in a pan of boiling water as per pack instructions.
2. Meanwhile, put the olive oil into a pan, add thinly-sliced red onion, roughly chopped bacon and lightly cook.
3. Add the roughly chopped sundried tomatoes and ricotta cheese. Lightly heat and blend together. Add the spinach leaves and stir through.
4. Combine this with the freshly-drained pasta then serve straight away scattered with black pepper, torn basil, chunks of crusty bread and a tomato and basil salad.

Top tip for making bacon, tomato, spinach & ricotta linguine

If you're not keen on spinach you can use a good handful of rocket leaves instead. This adds a bit of spiciness as well.