Creamy Lemon Rigatoni with Spinach
A delicious pasta main course or side dish!
Servings 4 servings
Ingredients
- 8 ounces rigatoni pasta (half a 16oz box) cooked to package instructions
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ½ tablespoon flour
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
- ¼ cup chicken broth
- zest of one small lemon
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 cup cup heavy cream
- 2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
- ¾ cups freshly grated parmesan cheese (divided)
- sea salt or kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, red pepper flakes to taste
- ¼ roasted pine nuts (optional)
Instructions
- Place salted water in a large pot on high heat. Cook pasta to package directions. While waiting for water to boil prep all ingredients.
- When pasta is about ten minutes from being done, place a pan on medium heat. Add butter, when butter is melted, add flour and whisk for 90 seconds, this is your roux. It will thicken your cream sauce.
- Add garlic and whisk. Then add broth and lemon zest and juice. Whisk again letting it simmer for one minute. Whisk in cream and heat to a low simmer. Cook for three minutes, whisking occasionally until sauce has thickened up.
- Pour into a bowl, top with nuts and more red pepper flakes if desired. Serve.
- Season with a couple of pinches of good quality sea salt and a few turns of black pepper. Stir in half the parmesan cheese, whisk until melted, stir in chopped spinach and take off heat. Strain pasta, do not rinse, add pasta to pan with cream sauce. Toss.
- Pour pasta into a bowl or onto a platter, sprinkle with remaining cheese, and garnish with pine nuts if desried.
Notes
If you'd like to round out this pasta with a protein feel free to add some rotisserie chicken!