Lemon & Garlic Pasta with Easy Pesto

This delicious pesto pasta recipe combines the butter, citrus taste of lemon with flavorful garlic to make a flavor-packed pesto dish that’ll blow the whole family away. What I love about this recipe is how fresh it tastes and how easy and quick it is to make.

Why you’ll love this pesto pasta:

• Quick: Make this pesto pasta recipe in only 30-minutes
• Nut-Free: Many people avoid pesto pasta because it often contains nuts but this recipe is entirely nut-free
• Flavorful: The addition of lemon and garlic in this recipe really adds an extra pop of flavor among the herby pesto

Ingredient Notes:

Pesto: It’s really easy to make your own, fresh pesto. All you need is a combination of fresh herbs like basil, dill, or even parsley, and you blend it all together with oil and parmesan cheese. It’s really easy to make and a great way to use up herbs that are going bad in your fridge or garden.

Maria Koutsogiannia

Maria is the creator of FoodByMaria and your go-to Greek food expert for cozy, flavor-packed recipes. Inspired by her Mediterranean roots, she brings traditional Greek flavors, feel-good ingredients, and a whole lot of joy to everyday cooking.

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Burrata: Burrata is an Italian cow milk cheese made from mozzarella and cream. The outer casing is solid but the inside is cream-like. If you can’t find burrata, you can use mozzarella but it will give a bit different of a texture and will take longer to melt. I love to use burrata in salads, on its own, or as a way to make dishes super creamy like this burrata pasta.

How to make pesto pasta:

1. With a mortar and pestle, make the pesto by combining fresh basil, dill, olive oil, parmesan cheese and salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. Cook pasta according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining the pasta and setting aside.
3. Place a large frying pan over medium heat and add butter. Add shallots and garlic, saute 3-4 minutes until softened.
4. Turn to low heat, stir in lemon zest, edamame or peas, salt and pepper – cook for a few minutes to warm the edamame or peas. Add lemon juice, parmesan cheese and about 1/4 cup pasta water, then stir in the noodles. Cook on low about 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly. creaminess.
5. Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt, pepper and parmesan cheese OR add more pasta water for more
6. To serve, plate pasta on a large bowl or platter, add the burrata ball and spoon over pesto sauce.

Expert Tips & FAQ:

I don’t have a mortar & pestle: If you don’t have a mortar and pestle, you can pulse the pesto ingredients in a blender or food processor to make the pesto.

Burrata: If you can’t find burrata you can simply omit from the recipe and top with more parmesan cheese or another favorite protein. A soft ball of mozzarella cheese would also work.

Other pasta recipes you’ll love:

• Pesto Pasta Bake
• Vegan Pasta Sauce Recipe
• Greek Style Vegetarian Pasta
• Truffle Pasta Recipe

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5 from 1 vote

Lemon & Garlic Pesto Pasta

This deliciously fresh pesto pasta recipe is so flavorful and perfect for a quick, easy dinner.

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

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Course Pasta

Cuisine American-Inspired

Servings 2 -3

Calories 514

Servings: 2 -3

IngredientsInstructionsNutrition

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Ingredients

• ▢ ⅓ package spaghettini
• ▢ 1 tbsp butter
• ▢ 2 garlic cloves, minced
• ▢ 1 shallot, minced
• ▢ zest of one lemon
• ▢ ½ cup frozen edamame or peas
• ▢ 1 tsp salt
• ▢ ½ tsp ground pepper
• ▢ juice of one lemon
• ▢ ¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese
• ▢ 1 ball of burrata

For the pesto

• ▢ ¼ cup packed fresh basil
• ▢ ¼ cup packed fresh dill
• ▢ ½ cup olive oil
• ▢ ¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese
• ▢ ¼ tsp salt
• ▢ ¼ tsp pepper

Instructions 

Start Cooking

1. With a mortar and pestle, make the pesto by combining fresh basil, dill, olive oil, parmesan cheese and salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. Cook pasta according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining the pasta and setting aside.
3. Place a large frying pan over medium heat and add butter. Add shallots and garlic, saute 3-4 minutes until softened.
4. Turn to low heat, stir in lemon zest, edamame or peas, salt and pepper – cook for a few minutes to warm the edamame or peas. Add lemon juice, parmesan cheese and about 1/4 cup pasta water, then stir in the noodles. Cook on low about 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly. creaminess.
5. Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt, pepper and parmesan cheese OR add more pasta water for more
6. To serve, plate pasta on a large bowl or platter, add the burrata ball and spoon over pesto sauce.

Notes

If you don’t have a mortar and pestle, you can pulse the pesto ingredients in a blender or food processor to make the pesto.

If you can’t find burrata you can simply omit from the recipe and top with more parmesan cheese or another favourite protein. A soft ball of mozzarella cheese would also work.

NutritionHide Nutrition

Calories: 514kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 20.7gFat: 46.3gSaturated Fat: 10.1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4.4gMonounsaturated Fat: 29gCholesterol: 26.8mgSodium: 1550.3mgFiber: 3gSugar: 2.8g