I’ve upgraded the Work From Home Lunch Series to the Date Night Series, starting with this addictive green goddess pasta. Think of it as a lemon goat cheese pasta, but with SO much more excitement added to it. Plus it’s topped with salted lemon almonds, which are my newest obsession.
Now this isn’t your typical green goddess pasta salad, which is just cooled pasta with green goddess dressing on it. For this pasta we are taking everything I love about green goddess dressing (aka the HERBS) and adding it to an easy, fresh, lemon goat cheese pasta.
The whole thing takes about 15 minutes and is just the right amount of fancy, while also being low-key and super fresh. The mix of fresh greens and acidity makes it one of my top summer meals, and I can’t wait to keep making it allllll through the warm months.
Table of contents
A bit about green goddess dressing
Now, let’s be clear, green goddess dressings as we know them have TOTALLY changed from the original. There are a lot of liberties taken with the green goddess dressing, which is why I’ve also just totally thrown the rules to the wind.
Green goddess dressing is traditionally made up of anchovies, scallions, parsley, tarragon, mayonnaise, tarragon vinegar, and chives.
I really vibe with anchovies, but mayo? Not so much. And you will see countless variations of green goddess dressing if you go searching on the internet. The dressing itself has really seen a revolution of what herbs are included, what fat source is included, and what spices/emulsifiers are added.
The evolution of green goddess dressing is super interesting, and now I’ve just adapted the meaning to be “a bunch of green stuff” – but even if this goat cheese pasta recipe just loosely relies on green goddess ingredients, we still want to pay our respects to the original.
Origins of green goddess dressing
Of course I’m a total food nerd, and when I was developing this lemon goat cheese pasta, I wanted to know ALL about the origins of green goddess dressing. And it’s kind of wild.
The general consensus is that it was officially named in 1923, when it was served at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco as an homage to the play “The Green Goddess.” It then because a hit best seller, and the rest is history.
But if you go way WAY back in history, it’s clear to see that the dressing is is a variation of sauce au vert (green sauce) which was served in France to Louis XIII. Of course the French were all fancy and served it with green eel, but I’m keeping things humble and just sticking with goat cheese pasta for this one.
So now that we have all the deets – let’s make it.
What you will need to make this lemon goat cheese pasta
The measurements for these ingredients are pretty chill, you don’t have to follow them to the T! If you prefer one herb over another, or just want to skip one, go for it! Or if you want to pare some down compared to others, that’s totally up to you. Think of these measurements more as guidelines:
- 1 cup parsley, about a handful
- 1 cup cilantro, about a handful
- 1/2 cup basil, about 1/2 of a handful
- 2 stalks scallions
- 1/4 cup chives
- 1/4 cup dill
- 8 ounces dried pasta of choice, I used gigli
- 1 large lemon
- 4 ounces crumbled goat cheese, or feta cheese if you prefer!
- 1/3 cup slivered almonds
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- salt & pepper to taste
How to make the green goddess pasta
- Destem and chop up the parsley, basil, cilantro, chives, scallions and dill. They don’t need to be perfect, but just roughly chopped.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt the water generously and boil your pasta of choice according to the instructions, mine took about 7 minutes to become al dente.
- Drain the pasta, but reserve 1/4 cup of starchy pasta water.
- Add the goat cheese, pasta water and drained pasta to a bowl, mix until the cheese is evenly distributed and slightly melty. Squeeze in the juice from 1/2 of a lemon and stir again.
- Add in the chopped herbs. Stir well. You want the pasta to still be warm so that the herbs wilt slightly.
- Optional, but highly encouraged – take two minutes to toast the slivered almonds in a skillet on medium heat. Add in the olive oil, juice from 1/2 of a lemon and salt to taste. Stir until the almonds are golden brown and fragrant.
- Serve the pasta warm and top with the salted lemon almonds. And that’s it!
Tips & tricks for this recipe
When it comes to this recipe, it is all about timing. The trick to getting everything under 15 minutes is to time it all just right. Start by chopping the herbs first (that might be the most labor intensive step), then boil the pasta, and while that is cooking, toast the almonds.
The almonds should take about 2 minutes, and the pasta should take about 7 minutes, so everything can be ready to go in no time if you’re quick.
Another great tip is to keep the pasta in the warm pot after you strain it. The warmth of the pot will help the herbs wilt (you want them to wilt just a little!) and mix with the pasta water and cheese. It’ll really help this lemon goat cheese pasta come together!
FAQ
Absolutely. I prefer goat cheese, feta, mascarpone or ricotta for this recipe. Each will bring their own flavor to the pasta, but all are great options!
Totally! It’s my personal preference to add the cheese while the pasta is still warm, then add the herbs and chill if you want to serve this recipe cold.
This pasta can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days.
Yes! But I recommend storing the chopped herbs and pasta separately. Add the cheese and lemon juice to the pasta when you are meal-prepping, but store the chopped herbs in a separate air-tight container and add them to the pasta when you are ready to eat! This will help the herbs stay fresher for longer.
Any nut will work if you want to switch it up! I love the idea of walnuts or pine nuts. If you are allergic to tree nuts, shelled sunflower seeds are also a great option.
And that’s it for this recipe! If you make it and love it, it would mean SO much to me if you left a review below. And if you have any questions that aren’t in the FAQ, please feel free to ask me in the comments!
And you all know I live on IG and Pinterest, so tag me over there if you make this – I would love to see! I love a good sweet-potat community tag.
Green Goddess Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 cup parsley about a handful
- 1 cup cilantro about a handful
- 1/2 cup basil about 1/2 of a handful
- 2 stalks scallions
- 1/4 cup chives
- 1/4 cup dill
- 8 ounces dried pasta of choice I used gigli
- 1 large lemon
- 4 ounces crumbled goat cheese or feta cheese
- 1/3 cup slivered almonds
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Destem and chop up the parsley, basil, cilantro, chives, scallions and dill. They don't need to be perfect, but just roughly chopped.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt the water generously and boil your pasta of choice according to the instructions, mine took about 7 minutes to become al dente.
- Drain the pasta, but reserve 1/4 cup of starchy pasta water.
- Add the goat cheese, pasta water and drained pasta to a bowl, mix until the cheese is evenly distributed and slightly melty. Squeeze in the juice from 1/2 of a lemon and stir again.
- Add in the chopped herbs. Stir well. You want the pasta to still be warm so that the herbs wilt slightly.
- Optional, but highly encouraged – take two minutes to toast the slivered almonds in a skillet on medium heat. Add in the olive oil, juice from 1/2 of a lemon and salt to taste. Stir until the almonds are golden brown and fragrant.
- Serve the pasta warm and top with the salted lemon almonds. And that's it!
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