*This Creamy Lemon Linguine is the most simple and satisfying pasta dish. Tart fresh lemon juice combines beautifully with heavy cream for a rich, vibrant sauce.*

Food has always been an important source of joy for my family, and cooking together and for one another is often a way that we celebrate holidays and important occasions. Whether it’s a towering layer cake for my mom’s birthday, homemade eggs benedict for Father’s day, or freshly baked cookies just because, we love to shower each other with affection by way of delicious, homemade treats. Food counts as a love language, doesn’t it?!

Especially when we were a bit younger, my brother Grant and I often collaborated in the kitchen. One year, we decided to cook up an epic Italian dinner as a joint present for our mom and dad. I still perfectly remember the menu – which we researched extensively and painstakingly tweaked: fresh tomato bruschetta, arugula salad, creamy lemon pasta, veal scallopini, and homemade tiramisu. We shopped together at the grocery store, then spent all day in the kitchen chopping tomatoes, slicing mushrooms, and assembling the dessert. The real crunch time came when my parents sat down in the dining room to enjoy their appetizer. We closed off the door to the kitchen and got to work: Grant searing thin slices of veal in a hot, winey sauce, and me throwing together this lemon pasta dish.

Luckily for all of us, this creamy lemon linguine is both delicious and could not be easier to prepare. Just a few ingredients – predominantly heavy cream and fresh, tart lemon juice – make a seriously bold statement, topped with a little parmesan cheese and swirled around thick linguine pasta. This dish is perfect on its own (or maybe with a simple salad) for the easiest elegant dinner. It also works lovely, in slightly smaller portions, as a preface to a meaty main course. So although the ingredient list is short and the preparation is simple, I know that you and your loved ones will adore this deliciously lemony pasta!