July 19, 2020

Simplest Spaghetti al Limone

Why, yes. I found another winning recipe from Smitten Kitchen that truly is the simplest! I love that there are only a few ingredients, most of which I have on hand at all times. It's quick and easy and a nice alternative to rice or potatoes. The first night I served it with grilled chicken. Later that week I decided to make it again to go with our grilled salmon. For lunch, I reheated the leftover pasta and ate it with leftover cold salmon. Delicious! 


Simplest Spaghetti al Limone
Smitten Kitchen



Coarse salt
1/2 lb. dried spaghetti
1 lemon
3 1/2 oz. parmesan cheese
Freshly ground black pepper
3 Tbsp. olive oil
Fresh basil leaves, torn (optional)

Boil spaghetti in well-salted water according to package directions. 

While the spaghetti is cooking, finely grate (with a rasp-style grater/Microplane) the zest of half the lemon into a large serving bowl. Add the juice of the whole lemon (approx. 4 tablespoons). Using the same rasp, grate the parmesan on top of the lemon juice. Add the olive oil and about 1/2 teaspoon of salt, along with several grinds of black pepper. Combine ingredients with a whisk until very well-mixed and as smooth as possible.

When the pasta is finished cooking, ladle out 1 cup of the cooking water and set aside. Drain the pasta and quickly pour it into the serving bowl with the lemon-parmesan mixture. Using tongs, toss until all of the strands are coated. Add 1-2 tablespoons of the reserved cooking water to the spaghetti until it looks glossy and lightly sauced. You may need more or less, but don't "wash" the sauce off the pasta. 

Add the torn basil leaves and toss to combine, then serve. Top each serving with a little extra olive oil, salt, pepper and parmesan.

My Notes:

I didn't have any fresh basil, but it was still incredibly delicious without the herb. 

I only used 2 tablespoons of the pasta water. I can't imagine using the entire cup.


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20 comments:

  1. This sounds wonderful! And we are enjoying some great gluten free spaghetti and I will most certainly give this a try. Thanks very much for the recipe! Take care. x

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    1. Kay, I'll bet this would be great with gluten free pasta. Enjoy!

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  2. Your pasta sounds delicious! I love lemon in everything.

    be well... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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    1. Mae, I love lemon too, but my husband can take it or leave it. He liked this dish, but didn't love it like I did. I can easily adapt his portion, though.

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  3. This sounds delicious! I have never tried it with lemon. I will have to give it a try.

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    1. Gretchen, for something so simple, it was certainly delicious.

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  4. That does sound really good! We have basil growing in our garden, but something (a beetle?) is chewing the leaves before we can harvest them. I need to get my Smitten Kitchen cookbooks out and look up some summer recipes. I've been using my Mollie Katzen ones this week and another oldie, Bean by Bean!

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    1. Laurie, I would love to grow basil, but it's too shady here. Isn't it annoying when pests get to our gardens before we do. We have slugs that love everything I put in pots out on our deck. I don't have any Katzen cookbooks, but I know they're quite popular.

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  5. So simple and delicious

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  6. I didn't see this one and I have just checke dout a Smitten Kitchen cookbook. You are correct, similar to the one I posted for Chef! I nee dot try your version. Liek Mae, I love all things with lemon.

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    1. Tina, I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. So easy!

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  7. Sometimes it's all we need, a simple delicious pasta dish. I made one too this weekend, with olive oil fried garlic (lots of it) parmesan, a bit of lemon juice and parsley. Really good, and courtesy of Tina, via Chef.

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    1. Claudia, I don't mind the occasional complicated recipe, but it sure is nice to have a few easy ones to fall back on when I get tired/bored of cooking. I plan to make this again and toss some grilled shrimp on top. Mmmmm.

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  8. Replies
    1. Diane, it is! My favorite kind of recipe. :)

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  9. Love Smitten Kitchen's pasta recipes. This sounds delicious!

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    1. JoAnn, I have really enjoyed her recipes this summer. If I were still working at Barnes & Noble, I'd have a lot of fun handselling her cookbooks.

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  10. I love pasta - such comfort food. Will have to save this recipe.

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    1. Iliana, I love that it's so easy and so delicious. Enjoy!

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