Lemon Ricotta Pasta is an easy weeknight dinner of tender pasta and creamy, lemony sauce the whole family will love. Ready in just 20 minutes!
Just as simple and delicious as Creamy Lemon Baked Pasta, this one-pot Pasta Recipe is sure to be a family favorite. Easy enough for a quick weeknight dinner and fancy enough to be an Easter side dish!
Sabrina’s Lemon Ricotta Pasta
If you are looking for an easy Italian Recipe that will fill you up without weighing you down, this is the pasta recipe for you. This light, lemony pasta dish is the perfect weeknight dinner, especially for busy nights! It’s made in less than 30 minutes with a handful of simple ingredients, most of which you probably already have on hand. Plus it’s a one-pan dish so there is minimal clean up!
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 1 pound thin spaghetti
- 1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese , freshly grated
- 1 tbsp lemon zest (zest from 1 lemon)
- 2-3 tbsp lemon juice (juice from 1 lemon)
- kosher salt , to taste
- coarse ground black pepper , to taste
- pinch crushed red pepper flakes
- basil , sliced, for serving
Instructions
- In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook pasta according to package directions.
- Reserve 1 cup pasta water, then drain. Return pasta to pot.
- In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, oil, parmesan cheese, lemon juice, and zest.
- Season with salt, pepper, and a pinch of red pepper flakes.
- Add ricotta mixture and ¼ cup reserved pasta water to pasta and toss. Add more reserved pasta water if sauce is too thick.
- Serve with basil, more parmesan cheese, and a drizzle of olive oil.
Nutrition
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Table of Contents
About this Recipe
Since this pasta only uses a few ingredients, you want to use the good stuff for the best flavor. Use whole milk ricotta cheese, fresh lemon juice and lemon zest, and a good quality olive oil for the lemon ricotta sauce. Grate the Parmesan cheese yourself or grab freshly grated Parmesan from the deli, not the packaged shelf stable kind near the dried pasta. Those Parmesan crumbles won’t melt and they just don’t have the intense, nutty, delicious flavor that makes Parmesan cheese unique.
Chef’s Note
This simple pasta recipe can be made in one pan to save on clean-up. Keep drained pasta in the colander while you make the ricotta mixture in the pasta pot. Return pasta to the large pot with ricotta sauce. If the pasta gets sticky while you make the ricotta sauce, drizzle with a bit of olive oil or pasta water before adding to the sauce. You can also transfer the cooked spaghetti and creamy ricotta sauce in a baking dish, top with more cheese
Can this be Made Ahead of Time?
This pasta is a great potluck dish because you can make it ahead of time in a casserole dish and just warm it in the oven to serve. Double the recipe and store one pan of pasta in the freezer for an easy weeknight dinner meal prep. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight and bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes, until hot.
How to Store
- Serve: This creamy pasta dish can be kept at room temperature for up to 2 hours before you need to store it.
- Store: Keep pasta in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 4 days. It’s best to reheat in the oven or low heat on the stove, adding splash of cream or tablespoon olive oil if its too dry.
- Freeze: To freeze, cool pasta completely and place it in a sealed container. Freeze for up to 2 months. Reheat thawed pasta (overnight in the fridge) on the stovetop over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, for best consistency.
Ideas to Serve
Serve this creamy pasta with a side of Roasted Vegetables and arugula salad for a light, healthy dinner. This pasta can be a side dish to an Italian main course like Easy Chicken Parmesan or an elegant holiday main like Garlic Pork Roast. The smooth sauce is so delicious, you are going to want to double it and store it for other easy weeknight dinners. You can use this creamy ricotta sauce on chicken, vegetables, rice, or just refresh pasta leftovers to make them extra creamy!
Alternative Cooking Methods
Easily make this a baked pasta dish. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta to just under al dente, drain, and retain pasta water. In a large mixing bowl, prepare ricotta mixture using ⅓ cup pasta water. Toss pasta in sauce and coat completely. Pour pasta into a 9×13-inch casserole dish and bake for 15-20 minutes.
Variations
- Meat: Sliced Grilled Chicken Breasts, leftover Roast Chicken, or browned Italian sausage are easy, delicious meat to add to this pasta recipe.
- Pasta: Instead of thin spaghetti, you can use other pasta you have on hand like penne, linguine, gemelli, or a gluten-free pasta you like. Follow the package directions to cook pasta to al dente.
- Veggies: Toss the pasta and ricotta sauce with sautéed mushrooms, cooked spinach, or fresh arugula. For more flavor, add Roasted Garlic Butter Mushrooms to this pasta dish.
- Spices: Add fresh herbs like thyme or rosemary to the ricotta sauce for added flavor. Garlic lovers will enjoy browning minced garlic in the olive oil before adding it to the ricotta mixture.
FAQ’s
The natural starch on the pasta releases into the water as the pasta cooks and is a chef’s secret ingredient to the best pasta sauces! The starchy pasta water makes an extra creamy sauce that perfectly wraps around every tender noodle.
Yes, you definitely want to use fresh lemon juice and lemon zest in this recipe for the best flavor! This is a no-cook sauce so lemon extract or concentrated lemon juice won’t have time to cook down to taste better.
Because of the way ricotta cheese is made, it doesn’t really melt no matter how hot it gets. That’s why it’s perfect for dishes like lasagna or this pasta dish. Its holds it’s shape and stays creamy without getting watery when you toss it with the hot pasta.
Italian Main Dishes to Serve with Pasta
So fresh and delicious! I made this with grilled chicken and asparagus and it came together so easily. It is so lemony and bright and very easy to make. Definitely one to keep in the rotation for when I need a quick weeknight meal.
So glad you enjoyed the Lemon Ricotta Pasta! Thank you Adrienne for the 5 star review!
This is yummy Added a little chopped garlic and fresh spinach