Linguine Pasta with Lemon-Cream Sauce

(110)

This easy, creamy pasta takes just 20 minutes to make.

Prep Time:
10 mins
Total Time:
20 mins
Servings:
4

Minimal ingredients and maximum flavor, that's how we describe this pasta with lemon cream sauce. It’s a luxurious dish that’s easy to make using readily available ingredients. While you could serve this lemon cream sauce with any pasta, we use linguine because the long thin noodles give a better ratio of sauce to pasta than a short pasta like penne would.

In addition to one lemon and a cup of heavy cream (this is not the time to substitute half and half), you’ll need olive oil and shallots—that’s all. We use both lemon juice and zest in this easy recipe. The tang of the lemon balances the richness of the cream. Another reason to love this pasta is that the dish takes just 20 minutes to make.

linguine with lemon cream sauce on a plate
Credit:

Andrea Araiza

Directions

linguine with lemon cream sauce ingredients
Credit:

Andrea Araiza

  1. Cook pasta:

    In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions. Reserve 1 cup pasta water; drain pasta and return to pot.

    cooking linguine
    Credit:

    Andrea Araiza

  2. Sauté shallots:

    Meanwhile, in a small pot, heat oil over medium. Add shallots, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until tender, 4 minutes.

    shallots cooking in a pan
    Credit:

    Andrea Araiza

  3. Make lemon-cream sauce:

    Add cream and lemon zest. Bring to a boil and cook until slightly thickened, 8 minutes. Add lemon juice and season to taste with salt and pepper.

    adding cream to shallots in a pan
    Credit:

    Andrea Araiza

  4. Toss pasta with sauce:

    Pour cream sauce over pasta and toss, adding enough pasta water to create a thin sauce that coats pasta. Taste and adjust seasoning, if needed, before serving.

    adding lemon cream sauce to linguine
    Credit:

    Andrea Araiza

linguine with lemon cream sauce on a plate
Credit:

Andrea Araiza

Variation

Add 1 cup chopped fresh broccoli or frozen peas to the pasta just before it's done.

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