Pasta with Lemon Sauce - Positano Style
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
The lemon sauce for this pasta recipe brings to life the wonderful flavors found in Positano and other stops along the Amalfi Coast of Italy where amazing lemons are abundant.
Author: Pinot & Pie
Recipe type: Pasta
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 1 lb. spaghetti or your favorite shape of pasta (preferably, fresh pasta)
- 4 Tbsp. butter
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup Pinot Grigio wine (or another dry white wine)
- 2 large lemons, zested and juiced (or 3 small lemons)
- 1 to 1⅓ cups Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- ¼ cup fresh basil, chopped (Use additional basil for garnish.)
- Salt
- 1 tsp. Red pepper flakes (optional)
- Grilled or sautéed chicken (bite-sized pieces), shrimp, or other seafood (optional)
Instructions
- Boil pasta in salted water until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water. Then drain the pasta.
- In a large skillet, heat the olive oil and 2 Tbsp. of butter over medium heat.
- Add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Do not brown it. This should only take a a minute or two.
- Increase the heat to medium high. Add the white wine. Simmer for 3-4 minutes until the wine reduces by half.
- Lower the heat to medium low or low. Add the remaining 2 Tbsp. of butter, the lemon juice, and the zest. Whisk until the sauce is glossy. Be careful not to burn the lemon zest.
- Add the pasta to the skillet with the wine sauce.
- Add ½ cup pasta water and the Parmesan cheese. Stir the pasta over medium low heat for 1–2 minutes to coat the pasta with the slightly creamy sauce. Add more pasta water, if needed.
- Remove the pasta from the heat and stir in fresh basil.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Be sure to zest the lemons before removing the juice.
The sauce will be slightly “creamy” without the need for adding heavy cream. This makes for a lighter, but delicious pasta sauce. The secret is the combination of the starchy pasta water with the butter and Parmesan. But if you want to make it decadent, add a splash of cream when you add the lemon juice.
This pasta is also wonderful with chicken (as pictured), shrimp, or other seafood. For the version in the photo, I sautéed chicken thighs in olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. (You’ll need an extra lemon.) Then I cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and tossed them into the pasta and sauce mixture before serving.
The sauce will be slightly “creamy” without the need for adding heavy cream. This makes for a lighter, but delicious pasta sauce. The secret is the combination of the starchy pasta water with the butter and Parmesan. But if you want to make it decadent, add a splash of cream when you add the lemon juice.
This pasta is also wonderful with chicken (as pictured), shrimp, or other seafood. For the version in the photo, I sautéed chicken thighs in olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. (You’ll need an extra lemon.) Then I cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and tossed them into the pasta and sauce mixture before serving.
Recipe by Pinot & Pie at https://pinotandpie.com/pasta-with-lemon-sauce-positano-style/