Lemony Pasta

What's a Lemony pasta, you might ask. I wanted to go with Lemon Pasta, but it sounded like the pasta was made from lemon rinds or something. But that's not what this is.

I came across a pasta recipe in a magazine a long time back. It had pasta that was flavored with lemon zest and ricotta, and several other ingredients all of which I've forgotten. But, adding lemon zest in pasta was new to me and it stuck with me. Last evening, I raided the fridge trying to put together a simple dinner. Pasta is usually a go-to resort for me. So, I started thinking along those lines and was reminded of the lemon zest infusion.

I kept it very simple (for the first time) by trying out Pasta without any tomatoes or sauce. I think the Italians might scorn at this, but it tasted surprisingly decent - and refreshing! If you're a fan of lemons, you should try this out. This is a dish with clean, crisp, minimal flavors.

Ingredients:

1. A bag of uncooked pasta (1 pound)
2. 1.5 lemons (or 2 lemons)
3. 1 teaspoon of salt
4. 2-3 teaspoons of freshly ground black pepper (this is the only spice ingredient)
5. 1/2 cup of ground/grated parmesan cheese
6. 1/4 cup of olive oil
7. a handful of flat-leaf parsley (Italian parsley)
8. a few basil leaves (if around)

Preparation:

1. Cook the pasta in a pot of heavily salted water and a drizzle of olive oil. 11-12 minutes is ideal cooking time for most pastas. 
2. Drain the pasta and reserve a ladle of  the pasta water. Mix the cooked pasta with the ladle of warm pasta water so that the pasta is not overly dry (remember there is no sauce)
3. To the pasta, add the zest of 1.5 (or 2) lemons and the juice of 1 lemon. Gently mix.
4. Add salt, pepper (to your taste), chopped parsley and basil. Combine.
5. Finally add a few drizzles of olive oil to moisten the pasta, and add the parmesan cheese. Toss gently and serve.

I loved this! It was so simple, yet every flavor was distinct and complemented each other very well. This recipe can be updated by adding some herb de provence  (dried Italian herbs), raw grape tomatoes (to give some color and vegetable), and some minced garlic sauteed in olive oil.