Welcome back to Just Five, a new column where we share recipes for refined and delicious dishes that use just five ingredients, excluding butter, oil, salt and pepper. There’s just one rule of thumb: Always choose the highest quality ingredients, as each will stand out in the recipes we feature. There aren’t many things more comforting in the dead of winter than a big bowl of pasta with a thick cream sauce. Adding lemon and arugula to this creamy sauce creates a spicy, sexy subtleness that will keep you warm and cozy on chilly winter nights the way that cashmere blanket draped across the sofa does. This dish is easy and inexpensive, though it’s more than appropriate to serve at an intimate dinner party with a salad of roasted beets, orange segments and toasted walnuts.
Fettuccine with crème fraîche and arugula Adapted by Dee Ryan from a recipe by Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers, originally published in Italian Easy.
Serves 4 to 6
Salt to taste
1 cup crème fraîche (Learn how to make your own here)
Juice of 2 lemons and zest of 1 lemon
Freshly cracked black pepper to taste
1 lb. fresh fettuccine, or other fresh pasta
5 oz. arugula, chopped
5 oz. grated Parmesan cheese
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
• In a medium bowl, mix the crème fraîche, lemon juice and zest, salt and pepper.
• Cook the pasta until al dente, drain and return to the pot.
• Pour the crème fraîche sauce over the pasta.
• Add all of the arugula and half of the Parmesan cheese, and toss to combine.
• Serve immediately, topping each serving with the remaining Parmesan cheese.
Other recipes using crème fraîche
This article appears in January 2011.