Spicy Lemon Pasta Recipe

How to make it

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• In a frying pan, gently heat about 1/2 c. of olive oil and a few pinches of chili flakes. You can use up to a tablespoon; or just a sprinkle works. Take care to not burn the chili flakes----heat for about 5-10 minutes. Drain oil into a container for later use.
• Add 2-3 T. of the chili-infused olive oil back into frying pan and saute′ your chopped onion until translucent. Add chopped garlic saute′ for a few minutes longer. Use a medium to medium high heat---too hot carmelizes the onions and burns the garlic.
• Cook pasta. It's better to undercook it (al dente). If your pasta is done before your onions, allow it to remain in the cooking water (do not drain yet) for now.
• To the onion mixture, add the lemon zest of one lemon and, using tongs or a pasta spoon, add the cooked pasta into the saute pan. It's okay that all of the pasta water is not off the pasta--it contributes to the sauce. Reserve the pasta cooking water in case you need more. Add chopped cilantro--usually one bunch is plenty, but use more if you love it, less if you don't. The green flecks are really pretty throughout the dish.
• Add the juice of one lemon. Mix it all together, salt and pepper to taste, adding chili oil and/or pasta water to moisten the mixture. You can also add plain olive oil if the chili heat is too much. The oil helps to carry all the flavors to your palate, so don't be stingy with it. Saute′ for a few minutes on low-medium heat for the flavors to marriage and for the water to cook off. Serve along with crunchy garlic bread and a fresh salad, top with grated parmesan cheese.
• Tip:..... The more heat you use, the more lemon peel and juice you can use. The lemon really cuts the heat. The acid from the lemon keeps the hot oil from staying coated to your tongue so it has heat but doesn't linger and swell.
• Use this as a side or main dish. You can also add any or all of the following things to pump it up to more of a main meal: chicken or shrimp (cook in saute′ pan with onions), roasted nuts---almonds/walnuts or pine nuts chopped (add at end---avoid extended cooking so they stay crunchy) sun-dried tomatoes, kalamata or black olives and feta cheese crumbled (added at the end to avoid melting it).
• Avoid adding other vegetables. They overcomplicate an otherwise simple and
• elegant dish.

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