You’ll also love our Creamy Rose Pasta, our Creamy Cavatappi Pasta, AND our Unfussy Creamy Alfredo Pasta!

Why you’ll love this straightforward lemon butter pasta

Growing up with an Italian father, i’m no stranger to pasta al limone! It’s one of my all time regular especially simple pasta dishes to make. Admittedly, mine isn’t exactly old-school but a version that I’ve adapted over the years and I genuinely love how it turned out. We often eat this as our main course with a protein on the side BUT it also makes a great side dish!

Why You’ll Love This dish

Bright and creamy: fresh lemon balances the richness of butter and cream.
Short dinner: ready in about 20 minutes from start to finish.
Simple ingredients: made with pantry staples plus fresh lemon and parmesan.
Restaurant-worthy flavor: silky, glossy sauce that coats every bite of pasta.
Unfussy to customize: add veggies, herbs, or protein if you want to bulk it up.

Ingredients needed

The ingredients for this creamy lemon pasta recipe are listed fully down in the recipe card but let’s briefly go over the pantry staples needed including a few substitutions you can make as desired!

Pasta. We used some fun spiral pasta from Trader Joe’s, but any long or short type of pasta will work. Use whole wheat, gluten free, or any other pasta of choice.
Lemon juice + zest. Use fresh lemon juice and zest to give this dish a lovely, bright and sunny flavor.
Butter. Thickens the sauce and makes it rich and decadent.
Heavy cream. For all that flavor-packed creaminess!
Garlic. Fresh garlic is pretty much a must in any pasta dish, IMO.
Salt + fresh black pepper. Brings out all of the satisfying flavor!
Parmesan cheese. I highly recommend high quality and freshly grated parmesan cheese. Because this dish contains so few ingredients, quality genuinely counts! And always grate extra parm for serving:)

Creamy lemon pasta served with lemon wedges in a white bowl.

How to Make It

Only a reminder that you can find the FULL written recipe down in the recipe card, but I want to quickly go over how to make them with visuals for you:)

While the pasta cooks, start the lemon cream sauce. In a large skillet over medium heat, saute the garlic in a little butter and olive oil.

Whisk in the cream and lemon zest and bring to a simmer. Cook for a few minutes until the sauce begins to thicken a bit. Add in the remaining butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, waiting to add the next tablespoon until the last one has melted.

Add in the al dente pasta along with about 1/2 cup of pasta water. Stir to combine.

Finally, mix in the parmesan and lemon juice and continue to stir until the cheese is fully melted and the pasta is coated in the creamy lemon sauce. Garnish with additional lemon zest, red pepper flakes, and fresh parsley and enjoy!

Recipe Tips

Reserve pasta water. The starchy water helps emulsify the sauce and makes it silky.
Use fresh lemon. Bottled lemon juice won’t give the same bright flavor.
Add lemon juice last. This keeps the flavor fresh and prevents bitterness.
Grate parmesan finely. It melts much smoother into the sauce.
Don’t overcook the pasta. Slightly undercook it so it finishes cooking in the sauce.

Frequently Asked Questions

Storage recommendations

To store. Place leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 to 4 days. We do not recommend freezing this pasta dish.
To reheat. Gently rewarm leftovers in a Dutch oven or large pot on the stovetop over medium-low heat, splashing in cream, almond milk, regular milk or water as needed to loosen the sauce. You can also reheat individual servings in the microwave.