Spaghetti al Limone Recipe
This Spaghetti al Limone Recipe is perfect anytime you want a taste of spring, regardless of the season. It's bright, cheery, and full of delicious flavors. Parmesan, garlic, and fresh basil add to the wonder of this easy (and healthy!) dish.
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 pound spaghetti, uncooked
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small onion, minced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest, finely grated, about 2 lemons
- ¼ cup lemon juice, freshly squeezed, about 2-3 lemons
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated, plus more for garnish
- kosher salt, to taste
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves, shredded
Instructions
- In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, bring generously salted water to boil. Add spaghetti to boiling water and cook until al dente, according to package instructions.
- Reserve 2 cups pasta water. Drain the rest of water from pasta, but do not rinse. Set aside.
- Heat half of the olive oil in now empty pot until shimmering. Add onion and garlic, 1/2 tsp kosher salt, and 1/2 tsp black pepper. Stir and cook 2 minutes.
- Whisk in 1 1/2 cups reserved pasta water and heavy cream into the pot. Bring to simmer and cook 2 minutes. Remove pot from heat and return pasta to pot. Stir until coated.
- Stir in rest of the olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, and Parmesan.
- Toss to coat, adding more of the reserved pasta water if needed to achieve desired consistency. Stir in fresh basil and season with additional kosher salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve warm, with freshly shaved Parmesan for garnish.
Notes
- Salt the pasta water generously. It seasons the spaghetti and helps build flavor from the start.
- Grate the Parmesan yourself. Freshly grated cheese melts smoothly and blends better into the sauce.
- Add the lemon juice off the heat. This keeps the sauce creamy and prevents the lemon from tasting harsh.
- Adjust the sauce consistency. Add a splash of pasta water at a time until it’s creamy but not runny.
- This recipe is part of our Healthy 30-Minute Dinner Recipes Collection.
- We love serving this spaghetti with some Pull-Apart Rolls or Easy Garlic Parmesan Knots.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 436kcal | Carbohydrates: 59g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 17mg | Sodium: 142mg | Potassium: 222mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 247IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 129mg | Iron: 1mg