The Italians like uncomplicated pasta recipes with simple ingredients such as Rotini with Fresh Lemon and Grape Tomatoes. They want to taste what the main flavors are. In this rotini dish, you can taste the tartness of the lemon, the richness of the olive oil, the sweetness of the grape tomatoes, the creaminess of the cheese, and the taste and aroma of the basil.
The inspiration for this dish came from Giada De Laurentis but we modified it for All Our Way. We've been making this recipe for many years.
It takes less ingredients than our antipasto salad but every time we serve this pasta we get lots of compliments. It's quick. It's easy. It's tasty. What more can you ask?
The beauty of this recipe is that it is delicious served hot and if there is any leftover pasta it's outstanding cold.
What's needed in Rotini with Fresh Lemon?
Paramount is the freshness of the ingredients!
- The lemon should be firm and heavy with juice.
- The garlic cloves you use should be firm and white with no signs of sprouting or yellowing.
- You must sliver or thinly slice the garlic, not chop or mince, because the more the garlic cells are broken down, the stronger the odor and flavor.
- Good quality olive oil is also a must as well as having grape tomatoes that show no sign of shriveling.
- The preferred cheese to use in this recipe is an Italian cheese called Ricotta Salata.
What is Ricotta Salata?
" Ricotta" means re-cooked and "Salata" means salted. The cheese is made from the whey part of sheep milk, which is pressed, salted and aged for at least 90 days.
It's milky white in color with firm texture and salty taste. It's often used in salads and is ideal for slicing, crumbling, and grating.
If you can't find this cheese you can substitute Feta.
How to finish the hot Rotini with fresh lemon.
As a finishing touch, you sprinkle ribbons of basil on top of the finished pasta and then gently mix it all together. Your basil leaves should be a deep green with no signs of black on them.
To chiffonade the basil, stack the basil leaves and roll them into a tube. Then cut them across the ends of the tube with your sharp knife to produce fine ribbons.
We promise you'll be pleasantly surprised at the simplicity of this rotini recipe and the superior taste.
Tutti a tavola è pronto!
Un caro saluto e alla prossima.
YOU MAY NEED . . .
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Rotini With Lemon, Grape Tomatoes, Basil, Ricotta Salata
This is an ideal pasta dish to make for a quick meatless meal or take to a potluck or picnic. It travels well and is delicious eaten hot or cold. This will last several days in the refrigerator but we can guarantee it won't last that long.
If you like this recipe please consider giving it a five-star rating. This helps others decide whether to try the recipe.
📖 Recipe
Rotini With Lemon, Grape Tomatoes, Basil and Ricotta Salata
Ingredients
- 1 pound rotini pasta
- 1 ½ pound Grape Tomatoes halved
- 1 large lemon zested and juiced
- ¼ cup good quality extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic thinly sliced or slivered
- 1 cup crumbled Ricotta Salata cheese or Feta cheese
- 10 Basil leaves chiffonade
- 1 teaspoon Mediterranean Sea Salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a large bowl add the tomatoes, olive oil, lemon zest and juice, garlic, Ricotta Salata cheese, salt and pepper. Let sit while the flavors meld.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook the rotini, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. You will want the pasta al dente because it needs to soak up some of the tomato and lemon. Reserve ½ cup of the water before draining the pasta
- Place the hot pasta on top of the tomatoes and other ingredients. Toss to combine, adding the pasta water if you feel the pasta is too dry. I find that there is usually enough juice in the bottom that the additional water is unnecessary.
- Serve. If you have any pasta left over, refrigerate and it is also good cold.
Nutrition
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Jovina Coughlin
Delicious summer pasta.
Gloria
I have never met a pasta dish I did not like. Well, except for "squid ink pasta"...love the look...hate the taste. Anyway, this is the perfect dish for any night of the week. Simple ingredients that produce delicious results. This is a great way to feed a family!!
Tammy
I love ricotta salata and actually just picked some up at the market. My local Italian pork store has the freshest selection of cheeses. This dish is beautiful yet simple and totally up my alley! Perfect weeknight meal and going to make real soon!
Jyothi (Jo)
Can't take my eyes off these freshest and colorful pasta. I'm so glad you added lemon and zest to this pasta. Can't be any fresher than this. Love simple recipes like these and it's perfect any day.
Veena Azmanov
I must admit I am not learning names of different pasta. All along I've always only ever called all pasta - pasta! ha... It really interesting these names and how they came about. I have never made a lemon base for my pasta - this looks good. Love grape tomatoes.
Alexis
I absolutely love fresh and simple pasta dishes like this one! I can smell the fresh basil in this dish already. Yummy! I'll definitely be making this dish this week.
Michelle
Thanks for all the tips! Thankfully fresh tomatoes are still readily available where I am so I'll have plenty of good ones to try this recipe with
Marisa Franca
Hi, Michelle! You'll really enjoy the recipe. Easy and so good!
Susie
Hi Hi....We love this dish! So easy and fresh! As a matter of fact, I made this dish a couple of weeks ago. Thanks, for your blogs and tasty recipes. We miss your videos......totally understand why things are on hold for now.
Happy early Birthday
Marisa Franca
Thank you, Susie!! We're glad you enjoy the recipes and the videos -- we'll be starting the videos on Instagram very soon. Love to everyone and a big hug to you.
Claudia Lamascolo
I just love that this can be eaten hot or cold but I truely doubt there would be any leftovers my family are big pasta lovers and everything in this is a win win for them !
Marisa Franca
Ciao, Claudia! I know what you mean about leftovers -- the only way we had leftovers is we made a huge batch, saved some for us and then shared at a gathering. ????
Noel Lizotte
I've got grape tomatoes coming out of my ears! It's hard to believe I only planted a single plant. This is perfect for using up that surplus!
Marisa Franca
Hi, Noel! I can't believe one plant can produce so much. We love our grape tomatoes.
Dahn
This looks fantastic. I love all the flavors in this dish. Initially I thought it was a cold salad but see that you serve it hot first. That is perfect. Hot for dinner tonight and cold for lunch tomorrow!!!
Marisa Franca
Thank you, Dahn! I know -- it is very good hot or cold.
Mirlene | Savory Thoughts
Thank you for the dinner inspiration today, Marisa! I have some fresh basil I need to use and some pasta in the pantry. I will be making this recipe tonight for dinner. I love the fact it has lemon and zest in it - a perfect way to bring out all of the wonderful flavors.
Marisa Franca
I'm sure you'll enjoy it, Mirlene!
Cathleen @ A Taste of Madness
I never make food with tomatoes because my husband HATES them. But now we are doing long distance, maybe I should try this! 🙂
Marisa Franca
Hello, Cathleen! The grape tomatoes add a wonderful sweetness to the dish while the lemon adds a lemony fresh taste.
Dee | Grammy's Grid
YUM! Looks good. Now this is something I could make 🙂 Shared x 3 ♥
Marisa Franca
Thank you for sharing, Dee!!
Jovina Coughlin
Great flavors and ingredients in this pasta dish. I bet it can stand alone as an entree or be a great side dish for grilled foods. Looks delicious.
Marisa Franca
Hi, Jovina! It is good by itself. We've been making it for years and we haven't tired of it yet.
michele
So many great tips, from how to slice the garlic to what ricotta salata means.... Simple dishes are the best and I loved this for a potluck meeting I had yesterday! It was so fresh and I got so many compliments on it! (sent them all to your site for the recipe!). Thanks!
Marisa Franca
Thank you, Michele! Yep! the simple dishes are the ones we run to.
Patricia @ Grab a Plate
I love Giada's recipes -- they're always so simple and fresh, and this dish is a wonderful example. It looks so good -- simple and flavorful ingredients!
Marisa Franca
Hi, Patricia! We've been making this recipe for so many years and every time we do we say why don't we make it more often.
Immaculate
So colorful and Refreshing . This would be great this time of the year . I especially love the tip on how to cut the basil. Thanks for sharing!!!
Marisa Franca
You're welcome Immaculate! Rolling the basil up can cut 🙂 your slicing time in half.