EASY LEMON RICOTTA PASTA & SPINACH

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I love this zesty lemon ricotta pasta with spinach, it makes a delish weeknight meal ready in less than 15 minutes. Simple, fresh ingredients, delicious flavor, and minimal effort.

This no-cook sauce is one of my go-to recipes from when I was at uni and can be made in no time. Mix creamy ricotta, parmesan cheese, garlic, extra virgin olive oil, and refreshing lemon. Your pasta sauce is ready.

Easy peasy, economical, perfect for your carb cravings and so good.

Creamy lemon ricotta pasta with spinach on a white plate.

If you’re a big fan of lemons like me, you’ll love how their juice and zest transform a simple dish into something that tastes pure sunshine. And what about the creamy ricotta? I love it, especially when I used to buy fresh ricotta from the cheese counter in Italy (ahhh distant memories!)

To make this easy pasta dish healthier and more filling, don’t forget to add your greens. You could swap spinach for other delicious vegetables, or even protein like grilled chicken or salmon.  The sky is the limit!

Watch how to make it

What ingredients you need

  • Pasta
  • Ricotta
  • Parmesan cheese
  • Baby spinach
  • Lemon
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Garlic
  • Salt and pepper

The ingredients for this lemon ricotta pasta are arranged on a white marble table.

  • Combine ricotta, parmesan, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, lemon zest, salt and pepper
  • Mix well, taste and make sure you’re happy with the seasoning
  • Meanwhile, cook your pasta until al dente

Ricotta, lemon zest, olive oil and parmesan are mixed with a spoon on a glass bowl.

  • Reserve some pasta cooking water
  • Add spinach to the pot and cook for 1 minute
  • Drain pasta and spinach and return to the pot
  • Add the ricotta sauce, the cooking water, and stir well
  • Serve with a drizzle of olive oil,  freshly grated Parmesan cheese, and lemon wedges (optional)
  • Enjoy… Buon appetito! 

Lemon ricotta pasta with spinach and lemon wedges on a white background.

Recipe notes & tips

If you fancy fresh and creamy spaghetti ready in no time, inexpensive, and kids approved, this recipe is for you!

Plus, if you go for whole grain pasta you’ll get more natural fiber and micronutrients than white pasta. Whole-grain is the healthier option also when it comes to a bowl of spaghetti, and makes you feel fuller longer which is a great bonus. We love it and we consume it nearly on a regular basis.

HOW TO ADD SPINACH TO PASTA?

Blanched (quickly boiled) spinach works fine in this recipe, and cooking spinach and pasta all in one pot saves time and washing up.  However, make sure not to overcook it, which will result in the loss of nutrients, flavor, and green color.

A fork is lifting some creamy lemon ricotta pasta noodles.Recipe updated: originally posted in July 2019, I’ve tweaked the post adding more notes and new pictures.

SUBSTITUTIONS

What about adding a twist? This terrific recipe is so versatile, feel free to add more vegetables or even protein of your choice. Here are a few variations that taste delicious along with the lemon and ricotta combo.
Add them to the pot when you stir in the ricotta mixture. 

  • Sauteed or grilled vegetables: asparagus, peas, zucchini, artichokes
  • Arugula, basil, chives
  • Cherry tomatoes or chopped sun-dried tomatoes
  • Grilled chicken
  • Grilled or smoked salmon

MORE EASY PASTA DISHES READY IN 15 MINUTES OR LESS?

If you make this vibrant lemon ricotta pasta with spinach, leave a comment, rate it, or tag a photo #theclevermeal on Instagram.
I would love to hear from you!

Creamy lemon ricotta pasta with spinach on a white plate.
Print Recipe
4.87 from 155 votes

Lemon ricotta pasta & spinach

This light and zesty lemon ricotta pasta with spinach makes a delish weeknight meal ready in less than 15 minutes. Simple, fresh ingredients, delicious flavor, and minimal effort.
Prep Time13 minutes
Course: pasta
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: Lemon ricotta pasta
Servings: 3
Calories: 538kcal
Author: Katia

Ingredients

  • 1/2 lb (8oz/220 grams) pasta (spaghetti, linguine, penne, fusilli...)
  • 1 cup (9oz/250 grams) whole-milk ricotta
  • 8 oz (230 grams) fresh baby spinach, washed
  • 1/3 cup (35 grams) grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra to serve
  • 1 unwaxed lemon, zest and juice
  • 3 lemon wedges, to serve (optional)
  • 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
  • 1 garlic clove, grated or pressed
  • salt and black pepper, to taste

Instructions

  • In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Meanwhile, make the ricotta sauce.
  • In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, olive oil, parmesan cheese, garlic, lemon zest and juice. Season with 1/4 tsp of salt and a good pinch of pepper.
  • Stir until well combined, taste and make sure you're happy with the seasoning.
  • In the last minute of the pasta's cooking time, reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water, then and add spinach to the pot. Stir well and push the leaves down to submerge them in water.
  • After 1 minute, drain and return pasta and spinach to the same pot.
  • Add the ricotta sauce and part of the reserved cooking water. Stir well to evenly coat the pasta in the sauce, add more cooking water as needed, you want a smooth and creamy texture.
  • Serve immediately and garnish with grated or shaved Parmesan cheese, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and lemon wedges if desired (for extra freshly squeezed juice, but I leave it optional). Plus, I love adding a good pinch of red pepper flakes, you might give it a go. Enjoy!

Video

Notes

Cooking water: add pasta water gradually, you might not need all of it. You don't want to water down the flavor, but only make spaghetti nice and moist. If you think the reserved water is not enough, you might add a few Tbsps of milk.
Pasta: you can use any short, large or long pasta shapes that work well to capture the creamy ricotta. I love spaghetti, but penne, fusilli, conchiglie work fine. Mini pasta shapes like orzo or even elbow macaroni don’t work well in the recipe.
NOTE: Nutritional values are estimates only.

Nutrition

Calories: 538kcal | Carbohydrates: 64g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 53mg | Sodium: 314mg | Potassium: 743mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 7661IU | Vitamin C: 41mg | Calcium: 403mg | Iron: 4mg
I love this zesty lemon ricotta pasta with spinach, it makes a delish weeknight meal ready in less than 15 minutes. Simple, fresh ingredients, delicious flavor, and minimal effort. #pastarecipes #spaghetti #easyrecipes #quickmeals

437 Comments

  1. 4 stars
    Had this for supper tonight and it was really good. The idea of the raw garlic in the ricotta threw me, even though we do that in tzatiki all the time. We did the garlic, olive oil and spinach together in a frying pan, then added it to the cooked noodles and ricotta mixture. The plates were scraped clean. Great recipe!

    1. I’m so pleased the plates were scraped clean, Lisa! 🤩 Thanks so much for your feedback x

  2. 5 stars
    We love this recipe! It’s so easy and super tasty. My kids love it too which is a huge bonus 🙂 We usually have salmon with it!

    1. That makes me happy, thanks for sharing your feedback, Sarah! 🥰

    2. 5 stars
      Yummy, easy and quick!!! What more could you want??!!

    3. Thanks for sharing your lovely comment, Marianne! I’m so glad you loved it, so easy and quick. x

  3. Kathy S Olson says:

    5 stars
    All 3 of us loved this recipe. It was easy and fun to make and tasted yummy.

    1. I’m so glad you guys loved it! 🤩 Thanks for your lovely comment, Kathy. x

  4. 5 stars
    Loved it. Nice and light- not heavy like an Alfredo sauce.

    1. I’m so glad you loved it! Thanks for sharing your feedback x

  5. 5 stars
    OMG!!! This was awesome. So flavorful with the lemon and the garlic. And sooo easy to make! We are trying to go meatless at least 2-3 days per week and this recipe fits the bill. Will be a regular in our house. Thank you for this wonderfully easy meatless recipe!

    1. That makes me so happy, Debbie! Thank you for sharing your lovely feedback 💛

    2. 5 stars
      I made this last year and saved it to Pinterest. Last year I added some baked chicken tenders to it and it was so good. I’m making it today and this time I’m adding more spinach and baked/broiled salmon. It’s going to be delicious! Thank you for sharing this recipe. I love pasta but I don’t eat it a lot. This recipe and fettuccine alfredo with chicken or salmon are my favorite pasta dishes. Yummy!!

    3. I’m so pleased it’s one of your favorite pasta dishes! Thanks so much for sharing your lovely feedback. 🤩

  6. ChesCo Holly says:

    5 stars
    This was excellent and simple to prepare. I prepared the ricotta parm mixture in a large bowl, in advance so it was room temperature. Based on another comment I sautéed the spinach and garlic in olive oil. I then mixed that with the cheese mixture and added the pasta to the bowl. I would suggest reserving the pasta water so that you can thin the sauce out as needed. A squeeze of lemon and a little more olive oil did the trick for me this time. Also someone commented on lemon salt so the next time I am going to grate the lemon and add it to the salt a day or so before making.

    1. I’m so pleased you enjoyed the recipe, thanks so much for your lovely comments and tips! 💛

  7. 5 stars
    This was absolutely delicious!

    1. I’m so pleased, Laura! 😊 Thanks a million for sharing your feedback x

  8. Thoughts on exchanging the ricotta for Cottage cheese? I’m gonna try 🙂 so save of calories!

    1. Hi Nicky, I’ve never tried, but please let me know how it turns out 😉

  9. Fabulous! I added nutmeg to the grand finale….great layer of flavor. Try it! Thanks for sharing.

    1. I love nutmeg, it works so well with ricotta and spinach! 😉 Thanks for sharing your feedback x

  10. We really liked this. So did my company. Added extra lemon zest and lemon juice.

    1. Thanks for sharing your feedback, Donna! I’m very pleased you all enjoyed this zesty pasta x

  11. 5 stars
    Oh thank you for this delicious and easy recipe! Made with artichoke hearts and whole family loved it 🙂 you were right about the red pepper flakes 🙂 perfection 🙂

    1. I’m so glad the whole family loved it! Thanks a lot for sharing your lovely feedback! 💛

  12. Rachel Soule says:

    2 stars
    My husband and I did not like this recipe. It was very plain. I think it would be a good side dish maybe but not as the main meal. I would not make this again.

    1. I’m sorry to hear you didn’t like it, Rachel. To be honest, I do love this recipe and I’ve never got negative feedbacks about it, but appreciate yours anyway, thanks. The recipe is simple yet versatile, and it offers plenty of variations to those who think spinach and ricotta sound very plain x

  13. Can I substitute lemon juice for fresh lemons/zest?

    1. Hi Julie, I’ve never tried, but I’m sure that fresh lemon zest delivers so much flavor and makes a big difference. However, if you like the taste of your bottled lemon juice you might give it a go x

  14. Hi! I love the recipe but my ricotta never got creamy it seized up against the pasta. Could it be because I left it on the heat when I mixed with pasta?

    1. Hi Michelle! Sometimes ricotta is grainy, not as smooth as it should be, that depends mostly on its quality. A good thing to do would be to let the ricotta cheese strain in a colander for hours, ideally overnight. Then, when you make the sauce, add a tiny amount of milk and whisk vigorously. That should help x

  15. 5 stars
    I made this with chicken for myself, my husband, and a very picky friend- we all loved it! It was simple to make and addictive to eat. I would highly recommend this recipe!

    1. Thanks so much for your feedback, Karen! 💛

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