This lemon and ricotta pasta with capers will cheer you up any time you serve it! It is a bright and flavorful dish that comes together in 20 minutes! The briny caper and lemon sauce married with the creamy ricotta create a sensational sauce that requires a dose of seconds!
Prep Time5 minutesmins
Cook Time15 minutesmins
Total Time20 minutesmins
Course: Main Course, Pasta
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: lemon and caper pasta, lemon and ricotta pasta, lemon pasta
Place the ricotta in a medium bowl. Remove the liquid from the ricotta by pressing the top with a clean paper towel. turn the ricotta and do this again until it is fairly dry. Set aside.
Slice one of the lemons to create 4-5 thick slices (save other lemon). In a large skillet add the olive oil and brown the lemons on each side, medium heat, about 4 minutes per side. Add the capers and stir to combine and cook an additional 1 minute. Take off heat and place onto a plate. Set aside. Leave drippings in the skillet for later use.
Bring 6 quarts of water to boil and add 3 Tbs Kosher salt. Cook pasta according to 'al dente' directions.
In a medium bowl combine the zest of the other lemon and to the bowl of ricotta cheese. Mix well until combined. Before straining the pasta add 1/2 cup of the hot pasta water to the ricotta. Mix well. Once the pasta is done cooking strain and add to the ricotta mixture and mix well to coat the pasta. Put the ricotta and lemon pasta back in the skillet and toss with the lemon drippings. Add the lemons and capers to the pasta and serve HOT. Season with fresh ground pepper, if desired.
Notes
I recommend buying a good quality ricotta since it is the main ingredient for this recipe. I stay away from low fat ricotta products as they contain added stabilizers to make them thicker.