Cream Cheese Pasta

Rich and creamy cream cheese pasta makes a quick weeknight dinner and is ready in just 20 minutes!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Diet Vegetarian

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 15

Total Time 20

Servings servings

Calories 624kcal

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
Cook pasta according to package instructions until al dente.
12 ounces uncooked pasta of choice penne
Reserve 1 cup of pasta water and set aside before draining pasta.
Meanwhile, heat butter in a medium skillet over medium-low heat.
2 tablespoons butter
Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute, stirring the entire time to prevent burning.
4 cloves garlic
Add in softened cream cheese, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Stir well using a spatula or wooden spoon to break up the cream cheese.
8 ounces cream cheese, ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, Salt and pepper to taste
Add in ½ cup of the reserved pasta water and whisk or stir until smooth. If needed, add an additional ¼ cup of reserved pasta water. Let simmer for 2-3 minutes.
Stir in parmesan and lemon juice.
½ cup grated parmesan cheese, 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Add in cooked pasta and parsley and stir well to coat.
2 tablespoons parsley
Serve hot with additional parsley and parmesan.

Pasta: I like to use a pasta with a bit of shape to it so that the pasta can grab onto the sauce. Gemelli, cavatappi, fusilli, and penne are all good choices.
Butter: I use salted butter. However, you can use unsalted butter and then season with salt to taste.
Cream cheese: I don't recommend using fat-free cream cheese because it doesn't melt well.
Red pepper flakes: Feel free to adjust the amount of red pepper flakes according to your tastes.
Nutrition values are estimates.