Pasta with roasted sweet potatoes and bacon! This easy pasta recipe is so delicious! Sweet potatoes and onions roasted until their meltingly tender, then tossed with pasta for an easy weeknight pasta dinner!
Easy Pasta Dinner Recipe
In the middle of summer, when zucchini and yellow squash were at their peaks, I made bowls of bowls of a Simple Roasted Vegetable Pasta. It became a regular at our house, using whatever veggies we had.
Now that fall is slowly, very slowly attempting to arrive, I’ve taken the idea and given it a little bit of a fall twist. Even though sweet potatoes are available year round, I always think of them as fall. The inspiration for this recipe came from a recipe from Mark Bittman – the master of simple and easy recipes!
While I love simple sheet pan suppers, pasta is a close favorite for creating easy weeknight pasta recipes.
Ingredients to Make Pasta with Sweet Potatoes and Bacon
- Sweet potatoes – my store had 3 different varieties! I choose the basic sweet potatoes.
- Bacon – just four slices is all you need to add plenty of flavor. Though you can use more (I never say no to more bacon!)
- Olive oil.
- Salt and pepper (not pictured.)
- Red Onion – white or brown onions would also work. I think red tend to be a little sweeter to begin with.
- Pasta – any shape you like, cut pasta as opposed to long thin strands are better paired for this recipe.
- Chives – I used parsley.
- Parmesan Cheese (not pictured) use freshly grated.
How to Make this Easy Pasta Recipe
Preheat the oven and dice the sweet potatoes and chop the bacon. Place on a baking sheet and drizzle with the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Roast for about 30 minutes.
While they are roasting, chop the onions and start the pasta water boiling.
Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle with the paprika. Add the onions and stir. Place the pan back in the oven and roast for 15 more minutes. While they are roasting, cook the pasta. Drain the pasta, reserving some of the cooking water.
Remove the pan from the oven and scoop the vegetables into a large bowl. Add some of the pasta water to the pan and scrape up any brown bits and add that to the bowl also.
Add the pasta, cheese and chives (if using) and toss to combine. Taste and add more salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with additional chives or parsley.
The Best Easy Pasta Recipe!
This was so good! The sweet potatoes almost dissolve creating a sweet sauce. The onions are sweetened by their roasting time in the oven and the little bit of bacon adds just the right amount of salty meatiness. The smoked paprika adds a smokiness that plays off of the bacon.
This is going to become a regular fall and winter dinner around here! A simple green salad topped with a lemon vinaigrette would be the perfect with this!
More Easy Pasta Recipes
Caprese Chicken Pasta Salad – an easy pasta recipe that uses a rotisserie chicken!
Cauliflower also pairs beautifully with pasta in this Cauliflower, Sausage and Breadcrumbs Pasta.
Turn the classic combination of sausage and peppers into a Pasta with Sausage and Peppers.
Lobster Pasta with Corn, Pancetta and Creme Fraiche – sounds and tastes fancy, but so easy!
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Pasta with Sweet Potatoes and Bacon
Ingredients
- 3 sweet potatoes peeled and diced into 1 inch cubes
- 4 slices bacon chopped
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- salt and black pepper
- 2 teaspoons paprika smoked
- 1 red onion chopped
- 8 ounces pasta preferably shaped not strands
- 1/4 cup chives or parsley
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese grated
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400.
- Combine the sweet potatoes and bacon on a large rimmed baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with the oil. Toss to combine. Roast for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove from the oven. Sprinkle over the paprika and add the onion to the pan. Toss to combine and place back in the oven to continue roasting for 15 more minutes.
- While the vegetables are roasting, cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving some of the cooking water - usually about 1/4 cup.
- Remove the vegetables from the oven and scrape into a large bowl. Pour the water into the sheet pan and scrape up any browned bits and add that to the bowl. Add the pasta, chives (reserving some for garnish,) and parmesan cheese. Toss to combine. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.
Notes
Nutrition
This post was originally published in 2010 and has been updated for 2019.
I think I’d just stop at the roasted sweet potatoes and bacon, and call it dinner. But that might be just me.
You had me at bacon, but the sweet potato and pasta sent me over the edge! I cannot wait to make this!!!
Oh yum!! Even the tray of red onion and sweet potato looks good here! I love a good pasta dish and yours looks perfect, so delicious and hearty at the same time. Thanks for another great recipe Pam!
Very interesting recipe! I love pasta, and have combine sweet potatoes and bacon, but never all three. Yum!
Sweet potatoes and bacon are a match made in heaven in this delicious recipe!!
I love the sweet and smokey combination!
Love the flavours of roasted sweet potatoes and red onion in combination with bacon. Perfect midweek family pasta dish. Ingredients added to my shopping list and will be making it later this week, can’t wait!
You’ll have to let me know what you think!
I think all of Bittman’s recipes are great but this one sounds like one of those top recipes. Of course, having sweet potatoes might be the reason. Good job with this.
Thanks for linking to Tackling Bittman.