20-Minute Lemon Parmesan Pastina (Easy Acini di Pepe) | Food My Muse
20-Minute Lemon Parmesan Pastina (Easy Acini di Pepe)
5 mins prepServes 2
Italian comfort food ready in 20 minutes. Toasted acini di pepe slowly soaks in a bright lemon broth before whisking in butter and grated parmesan cheese. The result is a rich, creamy, and effortless weeknight dinner.
0 Toast the Pasta: Heat olive oil in a pan. Add acini di pepe. Toast for 2-3 minutes until golden.
1 Simmer: Stir in the lemon zest and stock (or water), adding liquid one cup at a time. If using water, season with a pinch of salt. Simmer until pasta is al dente and retains a brothy consistency.
4 Heat your stock or water in a small pot on the stove. This helps the acini di pepe soak the liquids in faster and it makes it easy to at ladle at a time.
2 The Sauce: Squeeze juice from half a lemon into the pan. Stir in grated parmigiano reggiano. Cook while mixing for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add butter. Mix vigorously until emulsified into the pasta water.
3 Serve: On a small plate, combine lemon zest from 1 lemon with salt and then mix into the Pastina. Top with more parmigiano reggiano, black pepper, and that is it.
5 Rubbing the salt with lemon zest together with clean hands helps releases the oil from the lemon zest and infuses the salt.
