Creamy Lemon Pasta with Tomatoes and Spinach

I think I might be obsessed with lemons. I just get way too excited when I come across any recipe that incorporates them, whether it’s in a pasta dish, muffins, or a quick bread. I even get the huge 5 lb lemon bags from Costco and I’m only cooking for 2! Unfortunately, a couple of them get thrown out because I don’t use them in time. But in the end, you can never have too many lemons because you’ll always have some use of them. Like in this pasta.

Now this pasta dish has a creamy sauce made only from 4 ingredients: garlic, heavy cream, lemon juice and lemon zest. It doesn’t seem like much but the end product is a thin coating on the pasta that has a refreshing burst of lemony freshness with a tiny bit of saltiness to it. Throw in some fresh baby spinach and cherry tomatoes and you have a simple, quick, and healthy dinner made in less than 30 minutes.

Creamy Lemon Pasta with Tomatoes and Spinach (adapted from Comfort of Cooking):

Yields 4 servings

• 8 ounces farfalle pasta
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 lemons, zested and juiced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 cups baby spinach
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 1/2 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, halved

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; drain well.

While the pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large saucepan. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Add the cream, lemon zest and lemon juice; season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and let simmer until it starts to thicken, about 5-10 minutes.

Add the pasta and gently toss to combine.

Remove from heat; add the spinach, Parmesan and tomatoes and gently toss to combine until the spinach has wilted.

Serve immediately.