Ricotta Pasta
The most delicious Ricotta Pasta Recipe made 2 ways, with fresh and zingy lemon zest or lots of parmesan and cracked black pepper. This no-cook pasta sauce is easy and effortless the hardest part is boiling the pasta!
Cook Time10 minutes mins
Total Time10 minutes mins
Course: pasta
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 534kcal
Cheese and pepper version
- 15 oz short pasta (4 cups / 400g)
- 1 cup full fat ricotta (250g)
- ½ cup freshly grated parmesan
- ½ cup reserved pasta water (120ml)
- Salt and pepper to season
To make lemon ricotta pasta
- 15 oz short pasta (4 cups / 400g)
- 1 cup ricotta (250g)
- Zest of 1 lemon
- ½ cup reserved pasta water (120ml)
- Salt and pepper to season
Ricotta cheese and pepper version
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook your desired pasta shape until al dente making sure to reserve ½ cup of pasta water.
Pass the ricotta through a sieve and add to a mixing bowl with parmesan, salt and a generous amount of cracked black pepper.
Drain the pasta once cooked then add it back to the pot. Add the ricotta mixture and stir until completely coated.
Add a splash of pasta water and stir again to loosen, the pasta sauce should be smooth and creamy, serve.
Lemon ricotta version
Follow the same instructions as above but replace the parmeasn with lemon zest and instead of a generous amount of black pepper just sprinkle in a small amount.
Drain the pasta once cooked then add it back to the pot. Add the ricotta mixture and stir until completely coated.
Add a splash of pasta water and stir again to loosen, the pasta sauce should be smooth and creamy, serve.
- Drain any excess liquid from the ricotta before starting (I do this by letting the ricotta sit in a sieve for a couple of minutes letting any excess liquid drain off).
- You can use any pasta shape you like for this pasta sauce but I find a shorter pasta shape works best!
- It's always a good idea to reserve more pasta water than you'll probably need (just in case). I reserve ½ cup but you may not need all of it depending on the consistency of the ricotta.
- This pasta sauce is best served immediately as it'll thicken and lose it's creamy texture as it cools.
- This recipe won't freeze well but it's so quick and easy to make you don't need to.
Calories: 534kcal | Carbohydrates: 77g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 43mg | Sodium: 250mg | Potassium: 304mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 386IU | Calcium: 289mg | Iron: 2mg