Lemon pasta (pasta al limone) – Who says simple dishes with minimal ingredients are not flavorful? A handful of ingredients and 15 minutes are all that you need to whip up a delicious dinner any day of the week. The amazing combo of classic flavors make this pasta dish surprisingly delicious.
Sometimes you need to be super-creative to make a delicious dinner that’ll impress the fussiest eaters in the family. But at other times, simple flavors is all you need to create magic in the kitchen.
Enter pasta al limone- a classic Italian pasta dish highlighting the beautiful flavors of lemon combined with salt, pepper and cheese. The other ingredients like garlic, basil leaves and butter act as supporting characters that amplifies the flavor quotient in this dish.
To make this lemon pasta dish, you can use any long pasta, and I opted for spaghetti. Follow the package instructions to cook pasta al dente. While the pasta is cooking, start with making lemon sauce. That way, you can add cooked pasta straight to the sauce. Again, don’t forget to reserve a cup of pasta water.
Next up, the lemon sauce. Start with frying garlic in melted butter. Toss in the cooked pasta along with a little reserved water. At this stage, continue stirring and cooking until the sauce turns really shiny and emulsified. Add more pasta water if needed. Now, add in the remaining ingredients – lemon juice and zest, parmesan, basil, plenty of ground black pepper and salt. Toss and cook for few minutes until you get a lemon-flavored shiny sauce that sticks to the spaghetti.
And done! Flavorful pasta al limone for your next dinner!
Pasta Al Limone | Lemon Pasta
Simple pasta dish highlighting the amazingly delicious flavors of lemon combined with parmesan and black pepper
Ingredients
- 500 g spaghetti or any long pasta
- 5 tablespoons butter
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 cup grated parmesan
- Juice and zest from 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons chopped basil leaves
- 1/2 - 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Basil leaves, lemon zest and ground black pepper, to garnish
Instructions
- Cook spaghetti according to packet directions. Drain.
- Reserve 1 cup pasta water.
- Meanwhile, heat butter in a large frying pan over low heat. Add garlic and sauté until aromatic.
- Add pasta. Pour in 1/2 cup reserved water. Toss. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is shiny and emulsified.
- Add parmesan, lemon juice, lemon zest and basil leaves. Season with salt and ground black pepper.
- If the pasta is too dry, add more reserved pasta water and heat through. Ideally, the strands of spaghetti should be lightly coated in the shiny sauce.
- Garnish pasta with more chopped basil leaves, lemon zest and ground black pepper.
Notes
- For maximum flavor, I highly recommend fresh ingredients in this recipe
-If basil leaves are not easily available, substitute with parsley
Nutrition Information
Yield
4Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 513Total Fat 23gSaturated Fat 13gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 7gCholesterol 60mgSodium 609mgCarbohydrates 62gFiber 3gSugar 9gProtein 16g
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