I had a lovely, quiet week. It started with a day trip with my Dad and continued with a lot of gardening. I’m ramping up my green thumb efforts this year with a large garden in the backyard. Not just pots and window plants this year. So, I’ve been getting my hands dirty. I spent a day making homemade pasta, too, which I’ve been craving. My recipe this week, lemon garlic butter pasta, is my very favorite pasta dish to make when I’m home alone. It’s quick, easy, and so tasty, with lots of lemon, cheese, and butter. Garlic too.

Lemon Garlic Butter Pasta

I went the extra mile of course and made homemade pasta. Homemade pasta is dear to me, despite it being laborious sometimes. I was given a manual pasta machine for the first time when I was about 14. When I got really into cooking. It came from our favorite local cooking store and shined with a silver sheen. The first time I tried to make pasta I was determined to recreate egg yolk ravioli from Masterchef. But I rolled the pasta too thin. The ratios were off. And it all broke apart. I was young and had a fit. I wanted everything to be perfect. 

It’s gratifying to look back on that and see how much I’ve grown. Recently with the disappointing news of the cafe closing I sought out alone time, family, and creativity. I got my hair cut, too, by my aunt, and she told me to “find the positive” in every situation. It made me so happy because it’s the mantra I’ve been reminding myself of for weeks. So I’ve found the joy in being back at home full time. I’ve been applying for part time gigs and working on cool new projects that I’m so excited about! As I said, my favorite dish to make when I’m home for dinner is lemon garlic butter pasta. For some reason I end up making it every time. I use boxed pasta. Parmesan from the tub. Lemons, and greek olives. 

Gourmet Groceries + Italian Parmesan

The first time I made it I loaded it up with spinach, artichokes, feta cheese, and lemon olive oil. It was glorious. Perfectly catered to my sour/salty palate that craves Greek food. I remember curling up with a big bowl of it and watching a horror movie. It was Halloween time. So every time I find myself at home when my parents go out with friends I get excited to make it. The lemon garlic butter pasta is mostly made by feel. And it always comes out amazing. I decided to go all in with it this week and to share the recipe I use for homemade pasta dough. I learned a lot about pasta making in Italy, too, and from making it over and over again at home. 

Last week I stopped by my favorite gourmet grocery store on the way back from packing my things at the cafe. It was bittersweet, so I sandwiched my day with trips to fun places. The grocery store is filled with imported meats and cheeses. Handmade sausage and sauerkrauts. Fancy German mustards, crackers, and tons of imported chocolates. I bought a chunk of fresh parmesan from Italy. You could see the salt crystals in it. I was so excited to use it, but wanted to wait for the perfect moment. When I decided to make my favorite lemon garlic butter pasta this week, I knew it was the perfect time. 

Homemade Rigatoni

I thought a lot about what pasta shape to make, too. In all honesty I wanted to make linguine or fettuccine and think it’s best with long silky strands. But I hate painting it. So many curves and lines and layers. I decided to save myself a headache and make rigatoni – my other favorite pasta shape. I’ve made homemade green garganelli before for my pasta primavera, so I broke out my gnocchi board again and decided to roll my rigatoni with the same ridges. I started by making a bowl of pasta dough. Typically one egg equals one portion, so I used 3 eggs and almost 2 cups of flour. I found myself kneading dough for a good 10 minutes. I added a little flour, at first, because it was slightly soft. Then I was cooking with gas. 

I listened to an audiobook as I got lost in the rhythm of kneading. Dungeon Crawler Carl. Which sounds bizarre – and it is. But I’ve heard so many good things about it and I’ve been craving some escapism. It’s fun, interesting, and intense so far. I’m loving it. After I was done, I wrapped my dough in cling film and set it in the fridge while I made lunch. The thing I needed most was protein after a long week of physical work. I’ve started to work out again after resting my body and recovering from excessive kneading and lifting, whisking, etc. at the cafe. I did squats outside on a beautiful Tuesday with a cinderblock and puttered around the lawn.

Growing a Vegetable Garden

While I was catching my breath I studied the front lawn, perfect real estate for a grand vegetable garden. I’ve always wanted to make one and to grow tomatoes, spinach, carrots, berries, flowers, and herbs. Last year I grew basil and tomatoes in garden pots. I mostly used them for homemade pizza. But one of my goals this year is to nourish my body more with healthier foods, and having an excess of fresh produce should do the trick. I spent all day on Earth day, ironically, building a 12 foot garden bed. Pulling weeds and digging the top layer of the ground. Building a wooden frame and carrying wheelbarrows of dirt up and down the hill.

When I was done I nearly collapsed in exhaustion. Well, I wasn’t done, but I knew I made good progress for the day and I couldn’t take any more. My respect for farmers has grown exponentially. I made pizza for dinner that night, as always, and inhaled the whole thing. I felt like an athlete after a day of training. Sleep was difficult due to my soreness. But my mind was at ease. Dreaming of my field of greens and oranges and reds. Yellow flowers and purple eggplants. Scallions and tulips. I can’t wait to go out every morning and water it all.

Rolling + Shaping Pasta

Anyway, gardening calmed my mind a lot. I felt proud of my hard work too. So I rewarded myself by doing more hard work and making homemade pasta on Friday. After I ate lunch I took my dough out of the fridge and started to roll sheets of pasta. One thickness setting at a time. At first I went to thickness 6, which was a little too far. I cut squares and rolled them on my garganelli / gnocchi board with a wooden spoon handle. The perfect thickness for rigatoni. But as I stood them up in my cake pan to dry they started to flop and wilt. Like a dying flower. So I remedied my mistake by rolling the dough thicker and it worked much better.

I loved rolling each rigatoni on the ribbed board and watching them come together in elegant tubes. I love rigatoni so much because the ridges really soak up a lot of sauce. And if you cook them right they stay nice and al dente. One of my favorite pasta dishes of all time, at a restaurant in my college town, was rigatoni bolognese. It had an unusually generous amount of carrots in the sauce, which I loved. Along with thick shavings of fresh parmesan on top. I remembered my Italian parmesan when I was nearly done making the rigatoni. Which made my wobbly, sore legs worth torturing again. I finally placed all of my rigatoni tubes in a cake pan and left them for a few hours to dry.

Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce

I decided to make my lemon garlic butter pasta for dinner. So, when the time came, after a beautiful walk, I prepped my sauce. I grated a mountain of parmesan and snacked on the jagged pieces that fell off. I measured lemon juice, too, and chopped garlic. All I had left to do was boil the pasta, melt some butter, and make a quick sauce. It’s very simple – just load fresh pasta with butter, olive oil, lemon, and cheese. My other favorite ingredient is kalamata olives. I can’t get enough of them. They’re my favorite pizza topping, too, which pairs so well with tomato sauce, cheese, and meat. They make this pasta incredible with pops of salt. And purple color.

After I boiled my rigatoni for a short couple of minutes, I had a pan of melted butter ready to go. I sautéed garlic in a simmering gold bath. Gently bubbling and browning. Then, I hoisted the rigatoni right into the sauce and gave it a shake. I added some pasta water, too, which has a good bit of salt in it. I added my parmesan and it melted quickly. And I finished the pasta with lemon juice, olive oil, and my Greek olives. The sauce was velvety and sticking to all the handmade ridges. I was tempted to garnish the dish with green, but I kept it simple. All of my spring recipes will be green. And I’m about to have more basil than I know what to do with.

Audiobooks and Leftover Pasta

So I’d recommend using store-bought pasta if you’re making this in a pinch. Or on a weeknight after work. It’s just as good! I recommend linguine or fettuccini. Just make a quick sauce with plenty of garlic, butter, and lemon, and you can even add feta, peppers, artichokes, and your favorite vegetables. It lends itself to a Mediterranean flavor profile because of the kalamata olives and lemon. The olives are so tasty and salty.

I ate my plate of lemon garlic butter pasta with my parents. We caught up on TV and relaxed after a long week. And I went to bed early. Letting my audiobook lull me to sleep. The weekend was fantastic, too, with lots of good news, good food, and family time. I’m finished with my garden projects and ready to add soil on top and sprinkle in some seeds. This week I’m going to visit a garden store and shop until I drop. Things are looking up! And I have leftovers to eat.

Thank you for reading as always! Be sure to check out my Etsy for 100’s or recipe cards and art prints if you enjoy my paintings and recipes. Use code THEFORKEDRING for 25% off. See you in May!

Print Pin

Lemon Garlic Butter Pasta

My favorite lemony pasta dish with lots of butter, garlic, and olives

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Keyword garlic, lemon pasta, pasta, pasta recipes, rigatoni

Prep Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author theforkedring

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cup 00 Flour
• 3 large eggs
• 2 sticks salted butter
• 12 cloves garlic
• 3 cups shredded parmesan
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup greek olives
• 4 tbsp heavy cream

Instructions

• Place flour in a large bowl and form a well in the center.
• In another medium bowl, whisk together the eggs. Then, add to the well of the pasta bowl.
• Slowly incorporate the eggs into the flour until a shaggy dough starts to come together. Then dump onto a clean work surface and knead until a cohesive dough forms.
• Knead dough for another 10 minutes until smooth and a poke causes the pasta dough to spring back. Rest, covered, for at least 30 minutes.
• When pasta is rested, remove from fridge and cut into 4 equal triangles. Coat the first piece in flour and cover the other three as you work.
• Using a pasta machine, roll the pasta in a rectangle shape through each thickness setting until you reach level 5. Cut your long scarf of pasta into manageable pieces and then cut into equal 3″ x 3″ squares.
• Using a gnocchi board and a wooden spoon handle, place the pasta dough, floured side up, on the gnocchi board. Place handle over the bottom and roll dough up to form a tube, pressing into the board’s ridges.
• Place each rigatoni tube standing up in a small pan, using the edges to stabilize them. Allow them to dry before cooking and repeat rolling and forming pasta portions until you have no dough left.
• Heat a large stock pot of water over high heat. Meanwhile heat a nonstick sauté pan over medium heat and melt 4 tbsp butter.
• Add 4 cloves of finely chopped garlic to the butter and stir as it sizzles. When your pasta pot is boiling, add a small handful of salt to the water.
• Cook 1/4 of the pasta for 2-3 minutes until floating and al-dente. Immediately transfer pasta to the butter and garlic and shake to combine.
• Add 3/4 cup grated parmesan, 2 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1/4 cup Greek olives, and 1 tbsp heavy cream. Shake pan to combine. If you need to thin your sauce, add a couple tablespoons of pasta water.
• Plate pasta and garnish with more parmesan and herbs. Repeat boiling pasta and making sauce for the other 3 portions.

Notes

• If you don’t have a gnocchi board, roll your tubes on a wooden spoon handle on the countertop. 
• Always flour both sides of the pasta squares before rolling on the gnocchi board to prevent sticking to both the board and the wooden handle.
• I always season my pasta to taste after it’s done with sea salt and pepper. An extra drizzle of olive oil doesn’t hurt either!