You know when you walk by the Italian restaurant in the mall food court – Sbarro, Fazolis, whatever the knock off one that replaced Sbarro in our mall is called – and you’re assaulted by the scent of garlic butter? Your mouth starts watering and it takes every ounce of willpower within your soul to not go over and order something terrible? This is my house right now, and I gotta say, I don’t hate it.
That is to say, I’ve made four versions of Pasta with Garlic Butter Caper Sauce this week and the scent of garlic butter is in the walls. Again, I don’t hate it!
Watch How to Make It!
First I created it as a pan sauce for the sauteed salmon Ben and I had for dinner on Monday night. Then Ben mixed it with the rice pilaf I made for him to go with it and declared it the best side dish ever. I drizzled it over roasted spaghetti squash then declared it the best side dish ever before finally tossing the sauce with cooked gluten free spaghetti and, ding, ding, ding – we have a winner!
This light and swirly dish is ready in 20 minutes and we clearly can’t get enough of it. My Mom made my brothers and me egg noodles with butter and parmesan a lot when we were growing up and this dish reminds me of that because of it’s delicious simplicity. The capers take each forkful from ordinary to craveable though. They add little pops of salt and tang to each bite and I promise you’ll be fighting your dining companion for every last one!
How to Make This Recipe
Start by cooking 6oz gluten-free spaghetti noodles in a big pot of salted boiling water until just under al dente. The spaghetti will continue to cook a bit in the sauce, so make sure it’s just shy of al dente. Speaking of my spiralizer – I can’t wait to try this recipe out with a big bowl of zoodles!
Meanwhile, melt 1 Tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat then add 4 cloves minced garlic and saute until golden brown, about 1 minute. Try not to face plant in the skillet at this point – it smells Heavenly! Next add 1/4 cup white wine then simmer until reduced by half (if you don’t want to use wine, just leave it out and increase the chicken broth amount by 1/4 cup.)
Use whatever white wine you like to drink but make sure it’s not a sweet reisling or moscato. Lately I’ve been loving this Chateau Ste Michelle Sauvignon Blanc, so that’s what I used!
Next pour in 1 cup chicken broth, the juice of 1/2 lemon, and 2 Tablespoons capers. Turn the heat to high then boil the sauce until it’s reduced by half. Add another 1 Tablespoon butter then let it melt to finish the sauce. Taste then add a sprinkling of salt, if you please.
These are the capers I used, by the way. They’re usually by the pickles and olives at the grocery store. I always keep a jar on hand for adding to tuna salad, pasta dishes, etc. They add so much flavor to recipes for like, 8 calories and zero fat. Like!
The pasta should be ready when the sauce is, so drain then add to the skillet and toss to coat. Top with fresh herbs and a crack of black pepper, and dinner is served! Enjoy this delightfully light recipe!
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Pasta with Garlic Butter Caper Sauce
Description
Pasta with Garlic Butter Caper Sauce is a light and flavorful 20 minute gluten-free supper. You are going to lick your plate clean!
Ingredients
- 6oz gluten-free spaghetti
- 2 Tablespoons butter, divided
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup white wine (I used Sauvingnon Blanc)
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 Tablespoons capers
- juice of 1/2 lemon
Directions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil then add spaghetti and cook until just al dente - it will continue cooking a bit in the garlic butter caper sauce. Drain then set aside.
- Meanwhile, melt 1 Tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat then add garlic and saute until golden brown. Add wine then simmer until reduced by half. Add chicken broth, lemon juice, and capers then turn heat up to high and simmer until sauce is reduced by half. Add remaining Tablespoon butter then taste and add salt if necessary.
- Remove skillet from heat then add cooked pasta and stir to combine. Let sit for 3-4 minutes to let sauce adhere to pasta - it will thicken up as the pasta cools. Serve with fresh chopped herbs and a crack of black pepper for garnish, if desired.
Notes
- This sauce is also AWESOME with roasted spaghetti squash!
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
Toby 06.29.2017
I tried the recipe tonight with some vaiation. Turned out very tasty!!!! Made some adjustments as I’m vegan. In stead of butter I used earth balance; and, I replaced the chicken broth with low sodium vegetable broth. Since I wanted extra sauce to use tomorrow, I increased the “butter” (in my case using the earth balance sticks) to 5 table spoons; additionally I used about 2 tablespoons of olive oil to saute the garlic and the addition of 1/4 cup mix of diced vidalia and shallots, as that’s what I had available and thought, “why not?”. Other increases/ trade outs/ additions I made: I increased the amount of lemon juice to 5 table spoons and added 2 teaspoons lemon zest; 3 tablespoons of capers (my boyfriend and I love their vinegary, tart, salty flavor); 2 table spoons of dried parsley (love parsley! didn’t have any fresh available), some black pepper, a pinch of pepper flakes, a pinch of salt, and eventually added some garlic and onion powder along with some more broth and white wine to balance out the flavors – I went a little over the top with the lemon. Those adjustments worked out well to counter balance the lemon overload. For the white wine I use a dry, crisp Italian one called Ribolla Giala. With the adjustments I made it took longer to reduce the liquid.
While I really enjoyed how the dish turned out – it was a weee bit rich for a hot summer night. Next time I’ll stick to your recipe so I can better appreciate the over all flavor and lightness of the dish without cluttering the sauce with a bunch of additions. Thanks so much for the inspiration and a good meal!
Bev Hoffnan-Rush 06.25.2017
I made this recipe tonight. It smells delicious! I tweaked it by adding mushrooms and sauteed scallops! Yum@
Danielle 05.11.2017
I added grated Parmesan! So good! Great recipe, so easy my 6 and 7 year old made this!
Audrey 04.15.2017
Love this recipe, I added grilled shrimp and it was delicious..!,
Alannah 12.19.2016
I never comment on blog posts but I made
This tonight and I just had to say thankyou! It is so delicious! I added basil and parsley as well as some pickled octopus as I had it in the fridge and it was so yummy – will be making again
Julie Porter 06.13.2016
I made this recipe with chicken and bowtie pasta. OMG!! It is great! First time I’ve ate capers, and won’t be the last. Thank you for sharing.
Kristin 06.15.2016
Yay!! I know – they are so addicting!
Irene 05.11.2016
Just made your recipe with chicken mixed in the pasta! Omg this is delicious! I’m saving it to make it for a family get together. Thank you for sharing it!
Christina Noe 11.07.2015
I’ve made this twice now in a week. The first time it was pretty good. The second time it was amazing. I used fresher garlic, and my four cloves were BIG cloves. ;) I also decided to use clam juice in place of white wine as I don’t really keep white wine around but I had clam juice I had to use up. Not a usual substitution by any means but it was AMAZING. I also squeezed the other lemon half over top the plated pasta.Yum yum yum. I really appreciate how simple and quick this recipe is. Thank you!
Spumoni 08.03.2015
Wow. Iowa Girl Eats.. This Nebraska girl says you have something going on! I made this tonight looking for a Chicken Scallopini recipe. I pounded out chicken breast, salted and peppered and browned in olive oil. Took out the chicken and then made your sauce. I added shallots with the garlic. This to me was essential. I made more sauce than what was called for and could have used even more it was that damn good!! Put chicken in for a coat of the sauce then took it back out to stir in my pasta. Then tucked the chicken back in the mix and lord will be making this again. And they say we Midwesterners don’t have good taste… Please. I now know there is someone in Iowa too that knows what’s up!!
Kristin 08.06.2015
Yesss, so glad to hear! Love your chicken idea, too!
Karen 04.29.2015
Sometimes there is nothing better than garlic butter on pasta! It’s so simple but indulgent. And capers make everything better! I’ll have to look for gluten free penne (or some other short pasta). I have a thing about long pasta – too much work to twirl on the fork! LOL
allison 04.14.2015
I LOVE your recipes! I added chicken and parmasan to this and it was divine! I like the idea of asparagus too, I will be trying that later this week!
jenn 04.06.2015
Love your skillet! Where is it from?
Jo Skidmore 04.03.2015
Earlier this week I made butter garlic pasta with asparagus. It was delicious, but I ate all the asparagus out of it and have a bit orzo pasta left over. The thought of finishing off plain buttered orzo, albeit with garlic, was not sounding so exciting, but with capers?! Now that’s a treat. Thanks for the great idea!
Justinas 04.03.2015
My favourite thing to make in the kitchen!
Lindsay@BluegrassBites 04.03.2015
Totally making this for dinner this weekend! I have all the ingredients on hand – win! Also love the spaghetti squash recommendation. Can’t wait to hear your spiralizer review!
Debtgirl 04.03.2015
Now you’re talking!!! Have a nice weekend!
Ellen @ My Uncommon Everyday 04.03.2015
I love how simple yet elegant this is! Can’t wait to hear what you think of your spiralizer!
Leah 04.03.2015
Looks amazing! I’m on a big all-of-the-garlic kick right now (sorry to my hubby!) so I can’t wait to try this :)
Lauren 04.03.2015
I haven’t wanted to add to my kitchen gadget collection so I’ve been using a julienne peeler. I can’t wait for spiralized recipes and your review!
Medeja 04.03.2015
Quick and delicious! Looks good :)