solid papardelle with a creamy lemon garlic pasta sauce – this simple pasta dinner is loaded with fresh garlic and lemon flavor, lots of cream and parmesan cheese, and a velvety sauce in less than 15 minutes!

Pasta with Lemon Garlic Cream Sauce is a fast and good dinner that brings a hint of lemon to a rich and filling pasta dish. Pasta dinners can be heavy, but this creamy lemon garlic pasta has a fresh vibrant flavor that still has a hint of lemony summer. This dish can be served as a side, or a main dish, and is so easy to make. It also doesn't have to

At Avdaye, we add lots of tips in all of our recipes – because we are a home cook without any formal training, and we find we are more confident making dishes when we understand why it works, and what each ingredient means to the flavor of a recipe. Our goal is for even the most beginner home cook to feel empowered in the kitchen.

How to Make Creamy Lemon Garlic Pasta

To make this recipe, you'll need:

Papardelle Pasta – Papardelle is a large, wide, flat noodle that is larger than fettuccine, and is common in Tuscany. You can get it in both fresh and dried varieties. Fresh Papardelle often has a fluted edge from the tool used to cut it. We used dried pasta for this recipe.
Lemon – This recipe calls for both slices of lemon and lemon juice. The juice brings a fresh acidity to the rich pasta, and the slices bring some of the fruity zest and a wonderful striking visual appeal to the recipe.
Italian Herb Blend – This blend of oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary, and marjoram is a staple of Italian cooking and flavors that complement chicken and beans well.
Sea Salt and Black Pepper– Salt and pepper are the original culinary duo. Salt enhances and brings out many flavors, and the mild spice from black pepper helps to stimulate the taste buds.
Butter – The butter brings rich, nutty flavor to the sauce. In classic French cooking, adding butter to a sauce is called “mounting” as is ment to bring a rich creamy mouth feel to the sauce.
Garlic – Fresh garlic has a wonderful array of flavors, tangy and sharp when raw, and sweet and rich when cooked. It adds the bite, and depth of flavor that balances this easy pan sauce.
Heavy Cream – Heavy cream forms the backbone of this sauce. We use heavy creamy when cooking hot dishes because it's high fat content (over 36%) won't split when added to the hot pan.
Parmesan Cheese – Parmesan cheese is a quintessential Italian cheese, made from cow's milk and aged for 12 months. Its salty, nutty, and umami flavors are a good finish to this stew.

One you've gathered your ingredients, we will use the following method:

Assemble the Ingredients

Assemble all the necessary ingredients listed above.

Cook Pasta

Bring salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook until al dente.

Prep Sauce

In a heavy, high sided-pan, all the butter and allow to melt until it begins to foam. Add the garlic and cook for 45 seconds before adding the lemon juice, pasta water, herbs and seasonings.

Add cream and cheese

Allow to come to a boil. Remove from heat and rapidly whisk in the heavy cream. Return to the heat and whisk in the parmesan cheese.

Toss and Finish

Toss the cooked pasta in the sauce, garnish and serve.

Kitchen notes

Cook to al dente. Since we will cook the pasta in the sauce for a mintue or two, undercook your pasta a touch, leaving a bit of bite, so it won't be overcooked or mushy.

Add more cream when reheating. If reheating, you'll want to stir in more cream, or it may be a bit dry.

Make it spicy. Stir in red pepper flakes for a kick!

Top with meat or veg! Broccolini, baked chicken breast, shrimp, and even lobster tail are all good over lemon garlic pasta.

Reserve some pasta water before draining – the starchy water helps thin and emulsify the sauce.

Use room-temperature cream – adding cold cream to hot pans can cause it to separate; let it warm up slightly first.

Taste as you go – the balance between creaminess, acidity, and garlic is delicate, so adjust gradually.

Toss pasta directly in the sauce pan – this coats every strand evenly and prevents clumps.

A few answers

Do we have to use pasta water in sauce?

Reserving a cup of pasta water and adding to the sauce helps to emulsify and thicken your pasta sauce, as it contains starch that has cooked off your pasta. Scoop a cup of the water out of pasta before draining and add to sauce, bring to a boil, and let thicken before adding pasta to sauce.

How long can we store this recipe?

Leftover creamy pasta can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days.

Is there a dairy substitute?

We prefer oatmilk as a dairy free alternative if you're lactose intolerant.

How do we keep the sauce from curdling when adding lemon juice?

Add the lemon juice off the heat or after the cream has thickened, and whisk it in gradually to prevent curdling.

Can we make this pasta ahead of time?

It's best enjoyed fresh, but you can prepare the sauce and reheat gently over low heat, adding a splash of pasta water or cream to bring it back together.

Can we use bottled lemon juice instead of fresh?

Fresh lemon juice gives the brightest, cleanest flavor; bottled juice can taste bitter and flat.

What proteins can we add to make it a full meal?

Grilled chicken, shrimp, or seared salmon pair wonderfully with the creamy lemon garlic base.

Serve it with

This lemon garlic pasta is solid served alongside hearty meat favorites like prime rib pork chopsand scallops – or served with a simple baked asparagus.

If you're looking for an easy homestyle Italian dinner, try serving this pasta with a no-knead bread and easy bread dip, and some baked goat cheese balls to go alongside a Crunchy Lemon Parmesan Salad!

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Ingredients

1 pound pappardelle, cooked al dente
1 lemon, juice and zest
1 lemon, sliced into rounds
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
1 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
4 oz butter
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup cream
1 cup parmesan

Method

Cook papardelle pasta to al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta water.
In a pan, combine butter and heat until foamy and melted. Stir in minced garlic. Cook until garlic is fragrant, about 45 seconds.
Pour in lemon juice, cup of reserved pasta water, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Bring to a rapid boil, stirring occasionally.
When rapidly boiling, remove from heat. Whisk in cream, stirring until combined.
Return to heat and stir in parmesan, whisking constantly to melt cheese into sauce.
When cheese has fully incorporated into sauce, and sauce has thickened, remove from heat and toss over pasta with lemon slices.
Serve and garnish with minced parsley and red pepper flakes, if desired.