PSA: This Pine Nut and Preserved Lemon Pasta May Cause Flirting at the Dinner Table

Pine Nut and Preserved Lemon Pasta

This is date night — ’70s Spotify playlist on the speakers, a chilled bottle of white on the table, and a pot of this pasta on the stove. I owe a lot of this happiness to Missy Robbins, an amazing chef and friend, who introduced me to her brilliant and approachable pine nut pasta. With a very small handful of ingredients — mainly butter, garlic, Parm, and pasta — she showed me how fatty, nutty pine nuts can completely steal the show. I made my own version by adding a couple of my favorite staples, preserved lemons and Aleppo pepper, into the mix, and the tart heat makes it straight-up addicting. I’m not saying it’s foreplay on a plate, but I’m not saying it’s not.

INGREDIENTS

• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter

• 3 medium garlic cloves, finely sliced

• 2 1/2 tablespoons rinsed and chopped rind of Preserved Lemons (page 67)

• 1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper or red chile flakes, plus more for serving

• 3 tablespoons plus 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1 (16-ounce) package spaghetti

• 1/2 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted in a dry pan

• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus more for serving

• Juice of 1/2 lemon

• Freshly ground black pepper to taste

STEPS

1. In a large skillet over medium heat, combine the butter, garlic, and preserved lemon. When the butter has melted, add the Aleppo and ½ teaspoon of the salt and remove from the heat.

2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat and season with the remaining 3 tablespoons salt. Add the pasta and cook according to the package instructions for al dente. Reserve 1½ cups of the cooking water and set aside.

3. Add the pasta directly to the butter sauce along with all but 2 tablespoons of the pine nuts. Top with ½ cup of the Parm, the lemon juice, and 1 cup of the reserved cooking water. Mix with a wooden spoon until the sauce starts to emulsify and coat the pasta. Add the remaining ½ cup cheese and, if needed, more cooking water to help loosen the sauce.

4. Serve topped with the reserved pine nuts, a bit more Parm, and a sprinkle of Aleppo and black pepper.

"Tahini Baby" by Eden Grinshpan

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Excerpted from “Tahini Baby: Bright, Everyday Recipes That Happen to Be Vegetarian” by Eden Grinshpan. Copyright © 2025 by Eden Grinshpan. Published by Avery, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.