Just Try to Resist "Fantasy Sauce Pasta"

If the grocery store isn't your favorite place, it should be. We're sleuthing for the best back-of-the-box recipes and every Sunday, Posie Harwood from 600 Acres will share our latest find. 

Today: Swoon over the sexiest Italian pasta ever (with wine and cream and bacon and butter).

Those Italians. Just when you think you’ve tasted their heady, gourmet best—pillowy gnocchi dusted with Parmesan and nestled in sweet, roasted tomato sauce, or rich, wine-laced pasta bolognese shot through with tomato and striped with meltingly tender bits of pancetta—they go and throw something even better at you.

Of course, it should come as no surprise that the dish I fell for last week has a name like "Spaghetti with Fantasy Sauce." Who wouldn't want to taste that?

At first glance, it sounds alluring but too flashy, like some tanned, rakish, motorcycle-riding Italian named Giancarlo whom you know you should resist. It’s not sedate or sophisticated, but you give in, wanting a whirlwind romance, and you are rewarded.

It should be stated that, in addition to wine and sex and sports cars, Italians also excel in truly indulgent pasta. Here, you add wine and bacon and cream and butter to your sauce. It is worth it. You will go back for seconds.

The original recipe comes from the back of the De Cecco pasta box, and I’ve tightened it up to suit my tastes (leaving out a few ingredients and upping others). In searching for this recipe, I bookmarked at least three more dishes to share with you this summer. Each one is simple, flavorful, and perfect for warm-weather dinners. A glass of wine, an outdoor picnic table, a warm summer breeze, and you’ll be all set. 

Spaghetti with Fantasy Sauce

Adapted from De Cecco 

Serves 4

10 ounces dried thin spaghetti
3 ounces bacon (about 3 strips)
3 leeks
1/2 yellow onion
1 large handful baby spinach
2 tablespoons butter
Salt and black pepper
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup cream
3 ounces grated Parmesan (optional)

See the full recipe (and save and print it) here.

Do you have a favorite back of the box recipe, or have you heard about a great one? Leave any suggestions in the comments, and I'll try them out and share them here!

Photos by Posie Harwood