Creamy Chive Pasta With Lemon
This recipe is a good way to showcase any fresh chives you may have. In the spirit of buttered noodles with chives — or stir-fried lo mein with Chinese chives — this recipe uses the delicate alliums as an ingredient instead of a garnish. Their gentle onion flavor adds freshness to lemon-cream sauce, which is not unlike a delicate sour cream and onion dip. You can use crème fraîche for more tang, heavy cream for an Alfredo vibe, or ricotta for a hint of sweetness. To use another spring allium like ramps, leeks or a combination, thinly slice and simmer in heavy cream (not crème fraîche or ricotta) to soften before adding the other ingredients.
Ingredients
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 poundlong noodles, like linguine or spaghetti
- ¾ cupcrème fraîche, heavy cream or ricotta
- ¾ cupfreshly grated parmesan (1 3/4 ounces), plus more for serving
- 1 tablespoonfresh lemon zest plus 3 tablespoons lemon juice (from 1 to 2 lemons)
- ¼ ounceschives, cut into 1-inch pieces
Directions
- 1
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta.
- 2
In the same pot, make the sauce: Stir together the crème fraîche, 1/2 cup reserved pasta water, Parmesan, lemon zest and juice, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Add the pasta, return to medium heat, and cook, tossing vigorously, until the noodles are well coated, 1 to 2 minutes. Add more pasta water as needed to gloss the noodles.
- 3
Add the chives and stir until evenly distributed and slightly wilted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Eat with more grated Parmesan and black pepper on top.