My husband and kids raved about this easy lemon pasta. It’s bright and fresh, but still comforting, homey, and familiar like a lemony Alfredo sauce. It’s good enough for company or even fancy dinner parties, but perfect for busy weeknights when you want to get something on the table with ingredients you already have on hand in your pantry and fridge. The lemon garlic cream sauce is rich and flavorful without being heavy or overwhelming. It’s delicious all on its own with your favorite pasta shape (we love linguine but farfalle or penne would both be great choices) for a meatless meal option. Or serve it with your favorite grilled or pan-seared protein like chicken or shrimp for a more robust meal. For more lemon-inspired dinner recipes, be sure to try my Lemon Terragon Pasta Salad, Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup, Grilled Soy Brown Sugar Salmon with Lemon in Foil, or my Skillet Lemon Chicken and Rice!
What You’ll Need
Scroll down to the recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Pasta – I’ve used linguine pasta here, but any kind of strand pasta or long pasta shape will work well. Oil – Olive oil is my preferred cooking oil for most recipes like this one as it has a great flavor, but you can use canola oil or vegetable oil if that’s all you have on hand. The higher smoke point of the oil combined with the butter provides the best of both worlds. Butter – Use salted butter for the buttery flavor that balances well with the bright lemon zest. Seasoning – Use a simple combination of freshly minced garlic, kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, and red pepper flakes to pack flavor into this lemon pasta sauce. Cream – Heavy whipping cream will give the creamiest flavor and silky texture to your creamy lemon sauce. Lemon – Use one fresh lemon for fresh lemon zest and fresh lemon juice. You’ll need 3 tablespoons of lemon juice, so it may need to be a larger lemon or two smaller ones. Feel free to add even more if you really want to pucker up! Cheese – Freshly shredded Parmesan cheese will give you the best cheesy flavor. You can use pre-shredded cheese in a pinch, but it doesn’t melt nearly as well. Basil – Fresh basil leaves will add color, nutrients, and a great, fresh flavor to the pasta.
How to Make Lemon Garlic Pasta
Tips for Success
Adding starchy pasta water is the secret to getting a truly silky, creamy pasta sauce. Fresh ingredients are the other key to getting the best, brightest flavor for the dish, especially when the ingredients are so simple and few. Lemon juice from the grocery store tastes different from freshly squeezed, and it doesn’t take long to prep. Plus, you need the fresh lemon zest for that punchy lemon flavor anyway. Fresh garlic and fresh basil are also better here, as is freshly grated parmesan. Check out my complete guide on How to Make Homemade Pasta if you want to try and make your own fresh linguine or fettucine pasta to use with this sauce!
Substitutions and Variations
Gluten-Free. Use a gluten-free pasta to make this dish gluten-free. Add protein. Add some shredded chicken, turkey, beef, or salmon to give this meal more protein and make it go further. It’s a great recipe to use during the holidays for a lighter meal with leftover turkey! Herbs. Use different fresh herbs like fresh parsley, fresh rosemary, or fresh thyme to give this dish a different flavor instead of the basil leaves.
More Pasta Recipes
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Some amazing side dish recipes that would go great with this pasta are Oven Roasted Broccoli, Roasted Cauliflower, Haricots Verts with Dijon Vinaigrette, Tender Roasted Green Beans, and Bacon Wrapped Asparagus. Try my Breadsticks, Easy Homemade Crescent Rolls, Cheesy Garlic Mozzarella Swirls, or this Homemade French Bread for the perfect bread side dish. You can also serve this dish alongside some chicken, like my Crispy Cast Iron Skillet Chicken, Grilled Cilantro and Lime Chicken Thighs, or these Spicy Honey Chicken, to make it go further. Salmon Steaks or Grilled Shrimp are also great protein choices.
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