Make this Lemon Ricotta Pasta in under 10 minutes for a super quick & easy meal. Loaded with lemon & garlic flavors this cheesy pasta is a great main course or side dish for your favorite protein.
Pasta Doesn't Get Much Easier Than This
This might just be the quickest recipe I've ever created. Done in under 10 minutes (closer to 5) it's a great pasta dish for those super busy weeknights when you just need to get something on the table quickly.
All you need to do is cook the pasta, make the no-cook sauce, and combine. Fresh pasta makes it super quick - but you can also use dry pasta.
It's loaded with lemon flavors and a great meal on its own. And it's just as a delicious as a side for chicken, fish, shrimp or steak.
"Such a delicious dish that is super quick and simple to make." - Katie
Lemon, Cheese & Pasta!
You Can Make It Vegetarian & Gluten-Free
Make it vegetarian: Pecorino contains animal rennet, so to make it vegetarian use a pecorino substitute without animal rennet. You can for example often find "Italian hard cheese" which is similar to parmesan cheese and can be made without animal rennet, that will work.
Make it gluten-free: Just use gluten-free pasta.
Optional Add-ins
This recipe is delicious as it is, and I usually serve it exactly like this. However, there are also many ways you can switch it up and add some extra flavor. Here are some suggestions:
- Extra nutrients: Add spinach with the pasta for the last minute of cooking.
- Even more veggies: Add asparagus, broccoli, zucchini or other veggies. Boil the with the pasta or sauté before adding.
- A spicy kick: Add chili flakes.
- Extra flavor: Add fresh basil leaves can be added just at the end
- Something green: Add arugula on top just before serving.
Just Make the Sauce & Mix With Pasta
1. Make the Sauce
Get the pasta cooking, and while it's cooking you can make the sauce. Just place all the ingredients in a bowl and mash them together. Done!
2. Mix With Pasta
Drain the pasta (don't forget to keep some of the pasta water!), then add it back to the pot. Add the lemon ricotta sauce and some pasta water and mix really well, until the sauce is smooth and the pasta is well coated. Garnish with some lemon zest & fresh ground black pepper, and serve!
Pro Tips
- Cook the pasta in heavily salted water. This helps season the pasta and the sauce. The water should taste like the sea when sufficiently salted.
- Don't overcook the pasta. You want it to be al dente. I often cook it 1 minute less than what's stated on the package.
- Don't rinse the pasta. You need all that starch to combine with the sauce, because that's what makes it creamy!
What to Do with Leftovers
This dish does not store well. I recommend not making more than you will finish. It's easy to make just 1 serving - just change the number of servings in the recipe card below.
If you still want to store leftovers you can store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Freezing: Do not freeze leftovers.
Reheating in microwave: Reheat leftovers in the microwave in 30-second increments, stirring between each segment.
More 15-Minute Dinner Recipes
- Creamy Pesto Pasta10 Minutes
- Larb Gai (Spicy Thai Minced Chicken Salad)15 Minutes
- Pesto Salmon15 Minutes
- Garlic Butter Shrimp Pasta12 Minutes
More Quick & Easy Pasta Recipes
- Sundried Tomato Pasta with Chicken20 Minutes
- Creamy Red Wine Chicken Pasta30 Minutes
- Spicy Sausage Pasta15 Minutes
- Shrimp Carbonara10 Minutes
Recipe
Lemon Ricotta Pasta
Print RateIngredients
- ½ lb fresh pasta or dried, but it takes longer to cook
- ½ cup ricotta cheese
- ⅓ cup shredded Pecorino cheese + more to serve; or parmesan cheese or a vegetarian substitute
- 1 small clove garlic minced or pressed
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ lemon zest only; use organic or clean thoroughly before zesting
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or neutral cooking oil
- ¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper + more to serve
- ⅓ cup pasta cooking water
- salt if needed
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to package instruction. While it's cooking, make the sauce.½ lb fresh pasta
- Place ricotta, Pecorino, garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil and black pepper in a bowl and mix well.½ cup ricotta cheese, ⅓ cup shredded Pecorino cheese, 1 small clove garlic, 2 tablespoon lemon juice, ½ lemon, 1 tablespoon olive oil, ¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- When the pasta is done, drain it and reserve some of the cooking water. Then place the pasta back in the pot
- Add the sauce to the pasta together with the pasta cooking water. Mix well until the pasta is coated with sauce, adding more pasta cooking water if needed.⅓ cup pasta cooking water
- Taste test, and season with salt if needed. Served topped with extra pecorino cheese and fresh ground black pepper!salt
Equipment (may contain affiliate links)
- Measuring cups (metric or US)*
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is approximate and automatically calculated, and should only be viewed as an indication.
migdalia
bangin
Katie Siepierski
This was really good! I doubled the recipe used Murray's whole milk ricotta, Private Selection Italian Farfalle (bronze cut, made with golden amber durum wheat semolina), and I used Asiago instead of pecorino or parmesan. I really enjoyed it! Such a delicious dish that is super quick and simple to make. I may add some grilled chicken to it next time, or some scallops would be super good with it, it'd pair well with salmon too. So good!
Emmeline Kemperyd
Yum! Scallops would be amazing with this, need to try that for myself!