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I’m always in the mood for pasta, but I’m not always feeling something heavy or tomatoey. When that happens, I want something bright, simple, creamy, and comforting! I want this Lemon Ricotta Pasta. It’s ready in less than 30 minutes and has minimal ingredients—my kind of weeknight dinner!
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For me, lemon and ricotta are a perfect match (see this cake and these pancakes). The zing of the lemon cuts through the richness of the ricotta. Unlike pastas with sauces that require hours of simmering, this easy lemon ricotta pasta is ready in just 20 minutes. Just tossing noodles with ricotta wouldn’t make it creamy though. Instead, this recipe does something genius (If I do say so myself!): the lemon ricotta pasta sauce is blended until smooth, then added to the noodles along with some of the starchy water the pasta cooked in. These two emulsify, creating a creamy sauce that clings to each noodle.
Recipe At a Glance
Cuisine Inspiration: American
Primary Cooking Method: Stovetop
Dietary Info: Vegetarian
Key Flavor: Lemon and ricotta
Skill Level: Easy
Summary
- An any-day-of-the-week dinner: Because it’s so speedy, I’ll often make this Lemon Ricotta Pasta on a weeknight. However, it tastes like you spent longer on it, so I’ve made it on a weekend for a dinner party, too!
- Kid-friendly: My kids love this creamy pasta. They’ll even ask for seconds!
- Veggie-packed: This recipe has a whole container of spinach in it.
- A main dish or side: I love pasta night at my house when we eat pasta and only pasta. But this Lemon Ricotta Pasta is also an excellent side, served with roast chicken, Air Fryer Chicken Parmesan, or garlicky shrimp.
Ingredients to Make Lemon Ricotta Pasta
- Spaghetti: I always have spaghetti in my pantry.
- Ricotta and parmesan: Ricotta makes the pasta sauce velvety, while parmesan adds saltiness.
- Olive oil: This makes the sauce taste richer (and more delicious!).
- Garlic: You need peeled, whole garlic gloves. Don’t bother chopping them up! The blender will do it for you.
- Lemon: The zest and juice will go into the sauce.
- Red pepper flakes: These add just a little heat. You can leave them out, though.
- Baby spinach: These smaller, more tender leaves wilt quickly in the pasta.
Popular Substitutions & Additions
- Use any pasta shape. Linguine, bucatini, cavatappi, fusilli, penne: Whatever your favorite shape is, it’ll work in this recipe. You can also use gluten-free pasta.
- Switch up the cheeses. You’ll want to use one creamy and one salty cheese, but you could swap out the ricotta for mascarpone and the parmesan for pecorino romano.
- Add even more creaminess. To make the sauce more creamy, you can add some heavy cream in place of the reserved pasta water.
- Use a different vegetable. Instead of the spinach, add defrosted frozen peas, cooked broccoli, green beans, or chopped asparagus.
How to Make Lemon Ricotta Pasta
After blending the lemon ricotta pasta sauce and cooking the pasta, you’re basically 90% of the way finished with this easy recipe.
Tips for Making the Best Lemon Ricotta Pasta with Spinach
- Zest the lemon properly. Zesting a lemon isn’t hard, but it takes a little know-how. I like to use a rasp-style grater and gently run it over the lemon’s skin. You don’t want to take off any of the underlying, bitter white pith. It could make the sauce taste off!
- Salt the pasta water. Salt penetrates the pasta while boiling, allowing it to get properly flavored. It’s much harder to flavor pasta after it’s been cooked, and you will most likely end up using way more salt than needed. Plus, we’re going to be using this salted pasta water in the lemon ricotta pasta sauce!
- Cook the pasta al dente. I highly recommend cooking the pasta al dente, so it has a nice bite to it even after it’s been tossed in the warm sauce. You don’t want it to become soggy after you toss it in the sauce for a couple of minutes.
- Don’t rinse the pasta after cooking. You want to toss the hot pasta with the sauce without letting the pasta cool. I recommend draining it, then immediately adding it back to the pot and tossing it quickly and thoroughly with the sauce.
- Don’t try to use a food processor for the sauce. It won’t be able to blend the sauce, break down the garlic, or make it super creamy! Stick with a blender.
What to Serve With Lemon Ricotta Pasta
Frequently Asked Questions
This pasta can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. I recommend reheating it in the microwave or in a pot with a little extra water added to help loosen the noodles and sauce.
My pasta sauce turned out to be too thick. What can I do to fix it?
If your sauce is too thick, add more of the reserved pasta water a little at a time until you reach your desired consistency. The starchy pasta water helps thin the sauce without making it watery. If you don’t have any more pasta water left, add a splash of milk.
If the sauce isn’t where you like it as far as taste goes, try adding a bit more salt, pepper, or Parmesan cheese. Sometimes, a little extra seasoning can make a big difference. You can also add a pinch more of the crushed red pepper flakes for a bit of heat.
While I highly recommend using some type of blender or food processor to combine the sauce, if you don’t have a blender, you can still make the sauce. Whisk the ricotta, Parmesan, olive oil, garlic (minced finely), lemon juice and zest, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes in a bowl until well combined. It won’t be as smooth, but it will still be delicious and creamy when mixed with the hot pasta and pasta water.
If I had to describe this Lemon Ricotta Pasta in two words they would be elegant and easy. I love this recipe because it tastes and looks like it took way more effort. Honestly, I’ve started to keep this pasta’s ingredients in my fridge and pantry so I can make it whenever I need a 20-minute meal.
More Pasta Recipes:
- Cauliflower Alfredo
- One Pan Pasta
- Easy Baked Spaghetti
- Roasted Red Pepper Pasta
- Cacio e Pepe
- Pink Roasted Beet Pasta
- Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
- Easy Roasted Red Pepper Pasta
If you try this feel good Lemon Ricotta Pasta recipe or any other recipe on Feel Good Foodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below! It helps others who are thinking of making the recipe. We would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots, share it on Instagram so we can repost on Stories!
This recipe was originally published on October 16, 2019 and has recently been updated with photography, step-by-step process shots, and tips to better make the recipe. The recipe has slightly changed to use pasta of choice, fresh garlic instead of garlic paste, and spinach instead of kale. You can find the original recipe in the notes section of the recipe card.
Lemon Ricotta Pasta
Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound spaghetti or pasta of choice
- 1 (15-ounce) container whole-milk ricotta
- ¾ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese plus more for serving
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 lemon zest and juice
- ½ teaspoon salt plus more for pasta water
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1 (5-ounce) container baby spinach
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook to al dente according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup pasta water, drain and return the pasta to the pot, covered.
- In a high speed blender, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice and zest, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Process for 1 to 2 minutes, or until very smooth.
- Add the ricotta mixture, ½ cup of reserved pasta water and spinach to the cooked pasta. Set over low heat and cook until the pasta has absorbed some of the cream sauce and the baby spinach has wilted, about 2 minutes. Add more pasta water as needed until you reach your desired consistency.
- Serve with more grated Parmesan, if desired.
Notes
- To make it gluten-free, you can use any gluten-free pasta of your choice.
- To make the sauce more creamy, you can add some milk instead of some of the pasta water.
- Feel free to substitute the kale with spinach, or other vegetables like broccoli, peas or green beans.
- 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.
- In the same pot, heat the olive oil at medium heat. Then add the garlic paste and cook until fragrant. Whisk in the ricotta, parmesan cheese, lemon juice and zest, salt and pepper until well combined.
- Add ½ cup pasta water to the sauce and whisk until smooth. Add the pasta and the kale and continue to stir until the noodles are well coated and the kale softens. Add more pasta water as needed for a smooth sauce.
- Garnish with lemon slices and basil, if desired.
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Oh wow it’s good! Made it for dinner last night, super fast, easy and absolutely delicious. Will be adding this to our regular meal plan. Thanks for sharing. Wondering if I could pre-make a large batch of sauce and freeze it?
Yay, thank you! So happy to hear you loved it, Joey!! I haven’t tried freezing this sauce but I think it would do well in the freezer. Please let me know if you end up trying it, I’m curious to hear how it holds up!
So delicious and so easy!!
Yay, so happy you liked it!
Made this for dinner tonight. It’s amazing! Super easy and so quick. We’ll definitely be making it again. Thank you so much for the sharing this recipe.
Yay, so happy you liked it! You’re welcome!!
Just finished making this recipe and I love it. I added shrimp to the portion I’m eating today and tomorrow I’ll add grilled chicken. This is the type of recipe that can be worked in many different ways. It can either be a main dish or a side dish. I love the lemon flavor in this dish and I even added a little bit of freshly ground nutmeg in the ricotta mixture because I wanted the nutty flavor added in it. But I tasted before I added the nutmeg and I still love the orginal flavor. I made it with angel hair pasta. I would give it a 10 star. Thanks for sharing your awesome recipes. I like them all. You never disappoint me.
Aww, that is so sweet!! Thank you, Mary! This pasta totally works in a variety of ways, especially served with shrimp or grilled chicken. I’m going to have to try nutmeg in the ricotta too, that sounds so good!!
Something I learned from this recipe I made is that when I sat down to eat, I left the pot on my electric stove with the burner off but the burner I used to cook the pasta was still warm so tge sauce dried up so I realized that was a big mistake. All the ricotta was all crumbled. I’m going to try making more sauce to pour over the leftovers.
Oh no, what a bummer! So sorry to hear that, I hope your second batch of sauce turns out just as amazing.
My daughter requested lemon ricotta pasta for dinner and this recipe showed up on my Instagram. I have a recipe I usually use that’s very similar to this one with the main difference being making the sauce in a blender first. It made a big difference! The sauce was smooth and creamy, similar to alfredo. It was quick, easy and delicious!
Thanks, Sheri! I’m so glad you liked how the sauce turned out after blending, I think it makes all the difference!
Is there a way to print the lemon pasta?
Yes! Scroll down to the bottom of the post (or click on ‘jump to recipe’ at the top of the post) and you’ll find the recipe card. If you click on the printer button over the photo of the lemon pasta in the upper righthand corner of the recipe card, it will bring you to a printable version of the recipe. Hope that helps!
I used spinach instead of kale. This was delicious and so simple to put together. Thank you!!
You’re welcome! Kale is a favorite of mine in this dish as well!
Very good, very rich, great alternative to red or alfredo sauces. I added shrimp to my dish. Delish!
Thank you so much! That sounds perfect!
Good post! Thanks!
You’re so welcome!
I can’t wait to try this. Do you think this would be suitable for a one pot pasta dish?
Excited for you to give it a go! I used two pots to make this, but let me know if you attempt it all in one pot!
Tried half portion of this for the two of us, substituted spinach for kale and added in some leftover rotisserie chicken. It was excellent! Will definitely do again.
So glad to hear it! Thank you!
I doubled this recipe and didn’t get the proportions right … sauce got too thick and not enough lemon flavor. It was delicious, however, kids devoured every bite and asked to have it again with more spinach, add chicken, maybe broccoli. Going to try it with the pepper flakes, too!
Thanks so much for the feedback! Glad the kids still loved it and devoured it!
Thanks for another good recipe. Yummy and easy to prepare.
I made this for dinner last night, and it was so easy but flavorful. The lemon gave the ricotta sauce a nice zing while the bitterness of the kale balanced the tang and cheese. I added grilled chicken to my dish. Thank you for this delicious recipe. I WILL make it again. I think I will add red pepper flake next time just for a little kick.
So glad to hear that you enjoyed it! Thanks so much for sharing!! And I love the idea of adding red pepper flakes to it!