This Creamy Lemon Tortellini with Zucchini is on the table in less than 20 minutes—prep time included! This is the perfect weeknight dinner for those days when you need an effortless, delicious family meal in a hurry. The cheese filling in the pasta instantly makes it feel more filling and substantial, it’s comforting, and although I’ve opted for silky zucchini, it can be loaded with any vegetables you like! It is all made in one pan so clean up is easy, it is suitable to freeze and the sauce is so incredibly delicious and moreish that you will want to make it again and again.
Print Creamy Lemon Tortellini
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 tbsp garlic, freshly minced
- 1 zucchini/courgette, finely sliced
- Juice of ½ a lemon
- 1 cup (240 ml) chicken or vegetable stock
- 300 ml (1 ⅛ cups) thickened/heavy cream
- ½ tsp salt (or to taste)
- ½ tsp pepper (or to taste)
- 500 g (1 lb) spinach and ricotta tortellini (see note 1)
- 2 cups (60 g) baby spinach, firmly packed
- 1 cup (100 g) Parmesan cheese, freshly grated, plus extra to serve
Instructions
- Heat the butter on medium-high heat in a large, heavy-based, deep pan.
- Add the garlic and cook, stirring for 30 seconds. Add the zucchini and cook for 2-3 minutes until softened.
- Stir through the lemon juice, followed by the chicken or vegetable stock, thickened/heavy cream, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer.
- Add the fresh tortellini (no need to precook). Stir so that the tortellini are evenly coated with the sauce, using the back of your spoon to gently submerge the tortellini as much as possible (it’s okay if they aren’t completely submerged). Reduce the heat to medium-low so that the sauce is very gently simmering (you should be able to see gentle bubbles in the sauce but it should not be rapidly bubbling). Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes or until the pasta is cooked through. Stir once halfway through.
- Stir through the spinach and Parmesan cheese. Once the spinach has softened, turn the heat off.
- Sprinkle with extra Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.
Notes
Note 1 – Tortellini found in the refrigerated section of the supermarket (that takes between 2-5 minutes to cook) is required for this recipe.
MAKE AHEAD
Creamy Lemon Tortellini is best made and eaten immediately to get the most out of the luxurious, ultra-creamy sauce.
LEFTOVERS
Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 2 months. Thaw completely overnight in the fridge before reheating. The sauce will absorb into the pasta but will still be equally delicious!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
Yvonne says:
This was magnificent. One of the tastiest things we have had for a while. Entire family loved it, even the teenager and tween!! So easy and quick, but packed with flavour.
Michelle Wilson says:
I was looking for an easy dinner for myself, with leftovers hopefully for work lunches! Wow, this was just perfect! The flavour was spot on. Lemon flavour subtle, but so necessary. Another perfect, easy recipe from Nicole 👏
Jennifer says:
Everyone in my family of 7 loved this one! I did add the zest of the lemons we juiced, and added in steamed parsnips at the very end because I thought my family would find them delightful in this sauce (and my toddler brought in 3 big ones from the garden today). Though I think it would have been wonderful without those additions too. Thank you for the fantastic recipe!
Sach says:
Three words – Oh Em Gee!!!!!