Buttery Lemon Pasta With Almonds and Arugula
Brown butter, crunchy almonds and tangy lemon make a rich but balanced sauce for this pantry-friendly pasta. The arugula lends freshness and rounds out the pasta, turning this into a quick one-pot meal. If you want to increase the vegetables, you can double the arugula. (Just add a little more lemon juice.) And if you don’t have baby (or wild) arugula on hand, spinach or baby kale are fine, though slightly milder, substitutes. Don’t stint on the red pepper flakes; their spiciness helps bring together the flavors.
Makes 4 to 6 servings
Fine salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound linguine or spaghetti 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup sliced almonds
2 fresh rosemary sprigs
1⁄4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, plus more to taste
1⁄4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, plus more to taste
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
4 to 5 ounces baby or wild arugula, coarsely chopped, or use baby kale or spinach (4 to 5 cups)
Grated Parmesan, for serving
Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until it is 1 minute shy of being al dente, usually a minute or 2 less than the package instructions. Scoop out about 1 ⁄ cups 2 pasta water, then drain pasta.
While the pasta cooks, in a large skillet or Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Cook, swirling occasionally, until the foam subsides, the milk solids turn goldenbrown and the butter smells nutty and toasty, 3 to 4 minutes. (Watch carefully to see that it doesn’t burn.)
Stir in almonds, rosemary and red pepper flakes, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the nuts are toasted and slightly darker in color, about 1 minute.
Add about 1 cup pasta water to the skillet and bring to1a simmer. Add lemon juice, zest, ⁄2 teaspoon salt and a large pinch of black pepper, then add drained pasta and toss well. Add arugula, tossing until it wilts. Simmer for another minute, if needed, to thicken the sauce until it’s thick and glossy. If the mixture seems dry, add more pasta water 1 tablespoon at a time.
Taste and add more salt, red pepper flakes and lemon juice, if needed. Serve topped with grated Parmesan and more red-pepper flakes, if you like.