I'm a black and white kind of girl, so I need to be upfront with you from the very beginning...if you don't like citrus, then stop reading right now. If the tartness of lemon makes your kisser pucker and your eyes cross a little, then you will not enjoy my Citrus Garlic Linguine. However, if you appreciate a little zing from time to time and you want a simple pasta side dish to accompany fish or poultry, then read on.
Start with 6 tablespoons of butter, regular butter, not unsalted and 4 tablespoons of olive oil. Heat the oil and butter in a heavy skillet and saute 2 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic. Yes, I know this is a lot of butter and garlic, but we're going to coat a lot of pasta so hang with me. Garlic burns easily, watch it carefully. You will only need to saute it a minute or two. Add in 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes. Give a quick stir and then add in the zest and juice of 1/2 lemon and 1/2 orange. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley. Make sure to prep all of your ingredients before you start to keep it simple when the heat is on. This is what your sauce should look like in the end:
Pour the sauce over 12 ounces of cooked linguine and toss together with tongs:
Serve while piping hot and top with fresh grated parmesan. Transform this side into a main dish by stirring in cooked shrimp or shredded cooked chicken breast into your sauce after adding the seasonings, but before adding the citrus. I had a little leftover grilled salmon that I separated into loose chunks and stirred into a small bowl of the linguine to turn it into a lunch portion.
Citrus Garlic Linguine
12 oz. package linguine, cooked
6 Tbs. butter
4 Tbs. olive oil
2 1/2 Tbs. minced garlic
zest & juice of 1/2 lemon
zest & juice of 1/2 orange
1/2 cup fresh chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
Place butter and olive oil in skillet; when butter is completely melted, add garlic and saute 1-2 minutes. Stir in salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Add zest and juice of both the lemon and orange. Remove from heat and stir in parsley. Pour citrus garlic sauce over cooked linguine and toss gently with tongs. Serve while piping hot. Enjoy!
