I saw someone making lemon pesto and I knew I had to try it. I was not disappointed—such an interesting flavor profile for a simple recipe. Lemon pesto spaghetti with scallops was the first thing I thought of. Scallops are one of my favorite seafood; I thought they would be the perfect addition to this dish.
The pesto is this bright and creamy flavor, with a nuttiness from the parmesan and toasted cashews. The lemon is the perfect replacement for basil in the winter when basil is more expensive here and harder to find. Normally, we keep a ton of basil out in the backyard and then freeze some for the winter, but we always end up running out.
Ingredients for Lemon Pesto Spaghetti
- 1 lb spaghetti
- 3 lemons, Zested in a peeled type of way.
- 2 cloves garlic, roasted or grated
- 1 cup grated parmesan
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ cup cashews
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
How to make Lemon Pesto
The process was new to me. There are some interesting nuances to making this pesto instead of a traditional basil pesto.
Toasting the nuts
I used cashews for this recipe. I like how creamy cashews become when you process them and thought they would be a great nut for this recipe. Add the cashew to a small pan on medium-high heat. Toss them for about 5 minutes until they start developing a slight browning.
The toasting is (sort of) optional. Meaning you don't have to toast them, but the nuttiness will be more developed if you do.
The same goes for whether or not you choose to use roasted or grated garlic. The roasted garlic will give a more complete flavor with less intensity than raw garlic brings to the table.
We all have different amounts of time to put dinner on the table though, so do what works best for you.
Zesting the lemon
Zesting the lemon for anything usually means grating it. For lemon pesto spaghetti, we are going to zest it by peeling it carefully. Use a sharp knife and carefully peel the lemon by removing the yellow part of the skin, leaving as much of the pith behind as you can. The pith is the white part.
Once you have zested the lemon, you should have a bunch of peels.
Boiling the lemon peels
Place the zested lemon peels in a pot with water. Bring the water to a boil and boil for 5 minutes. Boiling the lemons will make them softer to process and less bitter for the lemon pesto spaghetti.
Remove the from the pot and strain. Let them cool for 5 minutes.
Creating the lemon pesto
For this part, you'll need a food processor. Start by adding the toasted cashews, roasted garlic, and lemon peels to the food processor and process until they are completely ground and homogenous. Then add half of the olive oil and process again. Next, add the salt and the parmesan, and process. Slowly, pour in the rest of the olive oil until the pesto reaches the texture you would like. Add the olive oil a little at a time to ensure the texture is right. It should look similar to basil pesto, yet lemon instead.
Finally, after boiling the spaghetti, save some pasta water, and let it cool slightly while the spaghetti finishes boiling. Add the pasta water to the pesto and process it one last time.
Strain the spaghetti and stir the pesto into the pasta until the spaghetti is covered.
Searing the Scallops
The lemon pesto spaghetti is extremely flavorful, so the scallops we kept quite simple.
Remove the muscle from the scallop. Pat them dry and salt and pepper both sides of them.
Bring a heavy-bottomed pan to medium-high heat. Add avocado oil to the pan. When the avocado oil begins to shimmer, it is ready. Add the scallops one at a time, and carefully spread them apart. Sear for 90 seconds and then flip using a butter knife. This will help them to not break.
Sear the other side for another minute. Then add in 2 tablespoon of butter and a clove of garlic. Baste the scallops for 1 minute and then remove them from the pan.
Searing the scallops may need to be done in batches depending on the size of the pan. Be sure not to overcrowd the pan. Overcrowding the pan will result in the scallops not developing a golden brown edge.
Scallops are a lot easier to make than people think. Just follow the 90-60-baste rule and they'll come out perfect every time.
Serving the Lemon Pesto Spaghetti with Scallops
I served the lemon pesto spaghetti with scallops over the spaghetti and garnished with fresh parsley. You could always use a little extra parmesan on top for this recipe. The scallops are a great touch to the bright flavor of the lemon pesto.
I think it's funny we always use the word "bright" with lemon flavors, but I love this recipe in the winter because it has such a summer flavor and reminds me of warmer days.
Love this seafood pasta? Me too! Seafood pasta is my favorite type of pasta. I try to get seafood in as often as possible to mix it up. We are always eating chicken, so it's nice to have a little change once in a while.
Try some of our other seafood pasta if you love this idea!
Shrimp Fra Diavolo with Linguine
Garlic Anchovy Pasta with Toasted Breadcrumbs
Don't be afraid to leave a review below! We'd love to hear your feedback and hear how you enjoyed the recipe! Follow us on Instagram @vindelgiudice.
📖 Recipe
Lemon Pesto Spaghetti with Scallops
Ingredients
- 1 lb spaghetti
- 3 lemons, skinned
- 2 cloves garlic, roasted or grated
- 1 cup grated parmesan
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup cashews
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lb scallops
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
Instructions
- Zest the lemon in peels, using a sharp knife. Try to get as little pith (the white part) as possible. In a small pot of water, add the lemon peels and bring to a boil for 5 minutes.
- In a small pan, toast cashews on medium-high heat for 5 minutes. (optional, but recommended)
- In a large pot, boil water and cook spaghetti until al dente, saving ½ cup of pasta water.
- Once lemon peels have cooled, place them in a food processor along with cashews, parmesan, salt, and garlic and process until mixed well to make the pesto. Then slowly add olive oil until creamy. Adjust the amount of olive oil if necessary. Stir into the spaghetti while the spaghetti is still hot and add in the pasta water.
- Prepare your scallops by removing the muscle on the side. It's usually a little bit whiter than the rest of the scallop and should peel off easily. Season with salt and pepper on all sides.
- Heat olive oil in a large frying pan to medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, place your scallops in the pan. Don't overcrowd the pan(this may require 2 batches). Sear scallops in the oil for about 90 seconds or until they become golden brown. Carefully flip the scallops using a butterknife or a very small spatula. Sear on the opposite side for 1 minute.
- Add 2 tablespoon of butter and garlic. Use a spoon to baste the scallops in the garlic and butter mix for 1 minute. Remove the scallops from the pan and serve over spaghetti.
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