One-Pot Pasta With Ricotta and Lemon
Updated March 13, 2024
- Total Time
- 15 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- Kosher salt
- 1pound short, ribbed pasta, like gemelli or penne
- 1cup whole-milk ricotta (8 ounces)
- 1cup freshly grated Parmesan or pecorino (2 ounces), plus more for serving
- 1tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest plus ¼ cup lemon juice (from 1 to 2 lemons)
- Black pepper
- Red-pepper flakes, for serving
- ¼cup thinly sliced or torn basil leaves, for serving (optional)
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
565 calories; 11 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 90 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 24 grams protein; 443 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta.
- Step 2
In the same pot, make the sauce: Add the ricotta, Parmesan, lemon zest and juice, ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper and stir until well combined.
- Step 3
Add ½ cup pasta water to the sauce and stir until smooth. Add the pasta and continue to stir vigorously until the noodles are well coated. Add more pasta water as needed for a smooth sauce.
- Step 4
Divide the pasta among bowls and top with some of the sauce that’s pooled at the bottom of the pot. Garnish with grated Parmesan, black pepper, red-pepper flakes and basil, if using.
Private Notes
Comments
Made this tonight for the second time, and made several important upgrades. Most important, I used my mini Cuisinart blender to whip the artisanal whole milk ricotta and Parmesan into a delicious, creamy spread, before tossing it in the pan with spinach, lemon zest, a bit of lemon juice and hot pepper flakes, along with about 1 cup of pasta water. The result was a wonderful, rich sauce -- unlike the first time I did it, when I didn't use the blender and the "sauce" was mostly lumps of ricotta.
I made this with the addition of arugula. So good! Just tossed in the arugula at the end for some green, peppery flavour.
Made this last night as I used up cream and made ricotta. So silky smooth and so easy. Did not use Parmesan. Did use fresh basil. Also tossed in some roasted coins of summer squash and zucchini. Rave reviews all around.
This was simple and good, but I found it did need some added salt, a lot of lemon juice, some crushed red pepper and I added spinach and let it wilt before serving. I used bel gioso whole milk ricotta and didn’t have any graininess issues - the sauce was super smooth.
I have been making a similar cooked version of recipe for years using sautéed shallot or onion. My kids love it and it’s healthy so i tried this no cook recipe. This is very easy (but not quite as tasty). I cut back on the lemon juice by a bit. It also needs more salt than the recipe calls for. I added granulated garlic and cooked frozen spinach. It doesn’t end up as hot as I’d like because you add the cold sauce to the pasta. But for an easy healthy weeknight side, it’s not bad at all.
I followed a commenter's suggestion to mix the sauce ingredients in the blender. The sauce was still more bland than I prefer (left out pepper flakes bc husband can't eat them). I added spinach and cherry tomatoes which gave it a beautiful color. Next time I will amp up the sauce seasonings. Overall, easy and tasty.