Pesto Tortellini with bacon, spring onions, and grape tomatoes

Here's a little insight into what I'll be doing over the summer: last week's box included some amazing spring onions and grape tomatoes which I incorporated into an amazing pasta dish. 

It's super simple to make, and easily interchangeable. You can use a homemade pesto, or save a step and dump in a jar of your favorite store-bought version. While I used tortellini, if you are avoiding dairy you could substitute a different type of pasta that you have on hand (I would suggest a thicker pasta like a rotelle or parpadelle). And, if you avoid meat, you could skip the bacon and start the recipe by substituting grapeseed oil in place of bacon fat. 

Ingredients:

Bacon, 8-10 pieces roughly chopped

1 carton of grape tomatoes, quartered

1 bunch of spring onions, whites only, thinly sliced

1 cup of corn, kernels off the cob, can use frozen as well

1lb fresh pasta, I prefer tortellini 

8oz of your favorite pesto sauce

Directions

In a large skillet on medium heat, brown bacon.

Remove from pan and drain, leaving a thin layer of bacon fat covering the bottom of the pan. (Here's where you would heat grapeseed oil until shimmering, if you were wanting to leave out the meat).

Add sliced spring onions to fat. Make sure you stir, as onions are thin, and you want them to slightly crisp, without burning. Add in tomatoes. Turn heat to low, and let simmer until tomatoes are soft.

While tomatoes are softening, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add in fresh tortellini and cook according to directions. Drain and set aside.

Add corn to tomato mixture. Cook for 2-4 minutes until just tender. Return bacon to pan. Add tortellini to vegetable/bacon mixture and add pesto. Stir to coat with sauce. Remove from heat and serve.