BY SHALEEN DESTEFANO
It’s January, and let’s be honest—your Instagram feed is a battlefield of kale smoothies, quinoa bowls, and “new year, new me” recipes. But, guess what? This isn’t one of those. If you’ve been force-feeding yourself “virtuous” salads since January 2nd, it’s time for a break. Call it a cheat day, a treat-yourself moment, or just pure indulgence—this dish is unapologetically decadent.
Adapted from the genius minds at Oxford Magazine, it’s the kind of recipe that doesn’t judge. Tweak it to suit your taste, share it with friends, or devour it solo in your cozy sweatpants. No rules, no guilt—we just want you to be happy.
Ingredients
6 slices peppered bacon, chopped
1 package of nameko mushrooms (or shitaki or whatever mushroom you prefer)
bag of frozen french fries (we like Alexia-you can use sweet potato or even tots))
1/4 cup butter
6-8 cloves garlic, finely-chopped
2 tbsp flour
2 1/2 cups heavy cream
3/4 cup parmesan, grated
sea salt, pepper, paprika and cayanne to taste
2 cups baby spinach, coarsely chopped
3 tbsp fresh chopped parsley (or basil)
Directions
Preheat oven to 425 and spread your frozen fries on your baking sheet.
Bake fries for 20 min until crisp.
In a large skillet, cook bacon until golden, add mushrooms to skillet and fry both until deep golden and crisp. Transfer to plate, set aside, wipe skillet clean.
Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Toss in the garlic, cooking until aromatic, about 1-2 minutes. Whisk in the flour, then slowly whisk in the cream.
Add 1/2 cup parmesan, spices, salt and pepper to taste. Toss the spinach into the mixture, heating just until the mixture begins to steam and spinach is wilted.
Remove from heat and cover until ready to serve.
To serve, drizzle the hot fries with alfredo, top with remaining parmesan, bacon and mushrooms. Garnish with parsley, if desired.