Creamy Corn Pasta With Basil Recipe (2024)

By Melissa Clark

Creamy Corn Pasta With Basil Recipe (1)

Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
5(8,338)
Notes
Read community notes

There’s no cream in this wonderfully summery pasta dish, just a luscious sauce made from puréed fresh corn and sweet sautéed scallions, along with Parmesan for depth and red chile flakes for a contrasting bite. Be sure to add the lemon juice and fresh herbs at the end; the rich pasta really benefits from their bright, fresh flavors. And while this is best made at the height of corn season, it’s still quite good even with out-of-season supermarket ears, or with frozen corn.

Featured in: To Get the Most Out of Corn Season, Reach for Your Blender

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Ingredients

Yield:3 to 4 servings

  • Fine sea salt
  • 12ounces dry orecchiette or farfalle
  • 1tablespoon olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • 1bunch scallions (about 8), trimmed and thinly sliced (keep the whites and greens separate)
  • 2large ears corn, shucked and kernels removed (2 cups kernels)
  • ½teaspoon ground black pepper, more for serving
  • 3tablespoons unsalted butter
  • ½cup grated Parmesan cheese, more to taste
  • cup torn basil or mint, more for garnish
  • ¼teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
  • Fresh lemon juice, as needed

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

567 calories; 19 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 80 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 8 grams sugars; 21 grams protein; 513 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Creamy Corn Pasta With Basil Recipe (2)

Preparation

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  1. Step

    1

    Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Cook pasta until 1 minute shy of al dente, according to the package directions. Drain, reserving ½ cup of pasta water.

  2. Step

    2

    Meanwhile, heat oil in large sauté pan over medium heat; add scallion whites and a pinch of salt and cook until soft, 3 minutes. Add ¼ cup water and all but ¼ cup corn; simmer until corn is heated through and almost tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Add ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper, transfer to a blender, and purée mixture until smooth, adding a little extra water if needed to get a thick but pourable texture.

  3. Step

    3

    Heat the same skillet over high heat. Add butter and let melt. Add reserved ¼ cup corn and cook until tender, 1 to 2 minutes. (It’s O.K. if the butter browns; that deepens the flavor.) Add the corn purée and cook for 30 seconds to heat and combine the flavors.

  4. Step

    4

    Reduce heat to medium. Add pasta and half the reserved pasta cooking water, tossing to coat. Cook for 1 minute, then add a little more of the pasta cooking water if the mixture seems too thick. Stir in ¼ cup of the scallion greens, the Parmesan, the herbs, the red pepper flakes, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Sprinkle with fresh lemon juice to taste. Transfer to warm pasta bowls and garnish with more scallions, herbs, a drizzle of olive oil and black pepper.

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5

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8,338

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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Paul

Delicious. Make a stock with the corn cobs. Simmer in water 10 - 15 minutes. Use this stock to cook the pasta. More corn taste. Reserve a higher proportional of whole kernels. 1/2 cup, maybe more for crunch in the finished dish. Or just use more corn.

Maire

Fabulous! Thanks, Melissa. I added chopped grape tomatoes - in halves or quarters - which also adds another bright flavor to the dish. I added the tomatoes in at the end with the basil. Yum, Yum and Yum!

Gustus

Sold! But everything's better with pork...I'm gonna add some bacon.

Rick Stutzel

Yummy. I added a pound of shrimp and a clove of garlic, and used mint. Really summer!

HaveACookie

How'd you like the pasta?

Janice

Jeff took the doors off the Jeep since it was a beautiful day. Unfortunately, when he rounded a bend one of the grocery bags fell out of the back seat and into the road! Luckily no one was injured. Long story short, this recipe is delicious even without scallions!

Rena

We made this last night and it was surprisingly good. Like others suggested, we added a 1/4 cup of finely diced pancetta (Italian bacon) from Trader Joe's. We threw it in the saute pan between Steps 2 & 3.

Bicka

I love corn so I followed the recipe as written. It was very interesting, but I found the sweetness of the corn a bit overwhelming. I added the cheese, lemon juice and basil as directed but still found it a bit cloying. If I make again, I would start with some garlic along with the shallots and add the red pepper during the initial sauté rather than at the end. I also thought that the amount of cheese was far too much and made the dish very gooey and didn't add a lot of depth.

ruthblue

I tend to favor Melissa Clark's recipes, but this was much ado about not very much: corn puree on pasta wasn't an especially toothsome result. That said, I would add more kick with the red pepper flakes by tossing them in with the butter and corn kernels rather than sprinkling them on at the end. And no need to fuss with a food processor to puree the cooked corn--I put them into a bowl and used my Braun stick blender and it worked beautifully, with super easy cleanup.

LovesToCookNYC

This was restaurant quality delicious. I added lump crab and chopped cherry tomatoes at the end. I also let the butter brown - I think this was the finishing touch. My guests were all so impressed! As another reader suggested, I also saved my corn cobs and boiled them along with the water for the pasta for extra pasta flavor.

qatburger

Really delightful. One caveat: I needed nearly 4 good-sized ears of corn to get 2 cups. Also, my corn mixture needed more than a little water in the blender (probably closer to 1/2 cup) to get a pourable texture.

Kate

This is my absolute favorite pasta recipe! I make it like once a week during the summer when I can get the ingredients fresh at the farmer's market. I was wondering if I could make a big batch of the sauce while corn is in season and then freeze it in containers to heat up and put over pasta throughout the fall/winter. Thoughts?

Anna

A little sweet for my taste. I agree that bacon would help play off all the sweetness, and add a smokiness that would work well with the creamy theme. If you're veggie, I suggest adding about 1T smashed capers when browning the butter & sautéing the whole corn. Add a little caper brine at the end. The acid with balance the sweetness. Bump up the chili flakes, and don't skimp on the herbs.

Nathan Brasfield

One of the best recipes I've found on NYT Cooking.
I left out the Parmesan to make it vegan, and it worked wonderfully.
However, I strongly suggest that you either follow the advice to make more sauce, or use less pasta. As I was pouring the pasta into the pan, I quickly reversed and put some back into the pot because I could tell it would spread the sauce too thin. I probably used about 2/3 of the pasta, but you could quite feasibly use even closer to half to make it more saucy.

Jenny

This was delicious. I added a few cloves of garlic with the scallions and a little bacon, which gave it a great smoky flavor. Almost like a summery take on carbonara. My husband declared this some of the best pasta I've made, and I make a lot of pasta. Toddler approved as well.

CZ

Very summery and bright. A little complex, I can see making large batches of the corn puree beforehand and storing/freezing it for use later would be advantageous. Upping the red pepper flakes in the sauce and serving it with a cool salad makes a really delicious pairing.

Marc

Absolutely delicious. I probably used too much red pepper flakes because we like the heat, but a little more lemon juice and Parmesan seemed to take care of that. My daughter said, "This is now in the rotation" which early 20s way of saying "a total keeper"!

emily

This was my favorite recipe all summer, people were obsessed with it. I made it vegan by using Earth Balance butter, Violife Parm, and I also used Jovial gluten free noodles. You won’t regret doubling the amount of corn and using mint AND basil.

GPS

Made it using vegan butter; loved the recipe and would definitely make it again!

Raro

I was looking for a recipe to use leftover corn on the cob. Everyone loved this quick easy, even the picky ones! I did have to add more than expected pasta water to make it saucy enough. A total of at least 1 cup. I had no scallions so I sautéed a big shallot and finished the dish with fresh chives instead of scallion greens. I added a clove of garlic to the sauté and added a 1/2 tsp smoky paprika. At the table people added ciglini mozzarella balls to increase the protein for growing teenagers.

julie

So delicious. Added garlic and 4 small overripe end of summer tomatoes when I was sauteeing the second batch of corn. Used slightly less butter. Added a pack of Trader Joe’s raviolis. Could have added two packs for a better ratio of sauce. Overall very easy recipe with multiple steps. Looked like a gourmet restaurant meal served along side, roasted butternut squash and fennel.

E. Gray

This recipe is so delicious! Followed the recipe exactly.. perfection!

Mel

Sunday sept 24 2023 - awesome recipe. We used three cooked corn.

Kevin Flanagan

Loved the freshness of this meal. I made a few alterations based on what I had on hand. No scallions, so I used some dehydrated onions. I upped the corn to 3 ears because I wanted more whole kernels. I also reduced the pasta to 8 ounces.I had about half a pint of cherry tomatoes so I tossed those in the oven to roast along with the remaining/additional whole-kernel corn and folded that in at the end. In addition to basil, I have an abundant crop of thyme and parsley. Fantastic dish, repeater!

Sally

Add bacon or pancetta

anne

Okay for side dish-add garlic. For main dish try bacon and scallops

mods

Used 3 ears of corn.Sautéed a few cloves of garlic til just starting to brown in EVO and set aside to add back in at the end with the pasta. Pancetta would be good too, will try next time.

Michael

The sauce felt chunky rather than smooth? Press it through a chinois? I also added some grilled chicken for protein and garnished with crispy crumbled bacon

ni

Delicious! I did make some minor modifications such as adding in a little tomato, garlic powder, thyme, oregano. And hint of lemon zest rather than juice.

PRao

I used shallots instead of scallions. Delicious!

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Creamy Corn Pasta With Basil Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Does basil or parsley go on pasta? ›

Fresh herbs add so much flavor to a dish. In this recipe, basil, oregano, chives, thyme and parsley turn a normal bowl of penne pasta into an extraordinary main dish meal.

Is pasta made from corn flour? ›

Pasta made with cornmeal is part of Piemontese culinary heritage but is rarely seen or made anymore. In the past, cornmeal was cheaper than wheat flour and was used to make a pasta called stradette; they are similar to the classic tajarin and are known as tajarin di granoturco.

Can I put corn in my spaghetti? ›

We found a new way to switch up spaghetti night. Hold the meatballs and put away the red sauce; we're tossing al dente spaghetti with sweet corn, baby spinach, crispy bacon, and red Fresno chiles for a bit of heat.

How to make pasta extra tasty? ›

5 Ways to Make Pasta Taste Like It Does in a Restaurant (Without Cream)
  1. Don't cook the pasta in advance. Raise your hand if you've ever had your noodles finish cooking before your sauce is done. ...
  2. Finish cooking the pasta in the sauce. ...
  3. Save the pasta cooking water. ...
  4. Add the cheese at the end. ...
  5. Skip the dairy altogether.
Nov 16, 2017

When should you add basil to pasta? ›

Add the pasta to the sauce and cook over medium-high heat until all the liquid is absorbed and the pasta is al dente. If the sauce is over-reduced, use the pasta cooking liquid to adjust it. At the last moment, remove the pan from the heat; add the extra-virgin olive oil, butter, basil and cheese.

What are the 4 herbs most popular with pastas? ›

5 Wonderful Herbs To Complement Your Pasta:
  1. Oregano. The most common herb that can add life to Italian food is oregano. ...
  2. Sage. The strong, slightly bitter flavour of Sage keeps it from losing aroma while cooking. ...
  3. Basil. Another common sprig that gives a whole new taste to any dish is Basil. ...
  4. Thyme. ...
  5. Parsley.
Dec 16, 2019

Is corn pasta good for IBS? ›

Good news – starch is not a FODMAP! Corn tortillas, corn pasta, polenta/cornmeal, maize flour and other foods made from corn starch/corn flour are fine to eat during the elimination phase of the diet as long as other high FODMAP ingredients have not been added.

Is corn pasta healthier than wheat pasta? ›

If you have gluten sensitivities or celiac disease, corn pasta can be a safe and delicious alternative. However, if you are looking for a pasta option that is higher in fiber, vitamins, and minerals, wheat pasta may be the better choice for you.

Does corn flour thicken pasta sauce? ›

If flour's the classic then cornflour is the gold-standard in thickening agents. Why? Because it is flavourless so it won't change the taste of your sauce, it's translucent when heated so it won't make your sauce cloudy and most importantly, it works.

Do chefs put sugar in spaghetti sauce? ›

Cook's Illustrated would agree, saying that the key to making a good tomato sauce means walking a fine line between acidity and sweetness — and while the publication says adding a pinch of baking soda can neutralize the tomatoes' acidity, sugar enhances the tomato flavor more, which is why it is preferred.

Why do you put brown sugar in spaghetti sauce? ›

The reason for sprinkling a pinch of sugar into a simmering saucepan of tomatoes is simple: sugar cuts the acidity of the tomatoes and creates an overall more balanced sauce. The exact acid levels in tomatoes can vary quite a bit depending on whether they're fresh or canned, the tomato variety, and the time of year.

Is there a pasta made from corn? ›

I've been unwell for quite awhile now and corn pasta has been a lifer saver because it's fairly easy to digest (for me.) The ingredients are simply corn flour and an emulsifier, but if you take a look online for any homemade corn pasta recipes you will surely find mostly complex recipes with many ingredients.

How to keep creamy pasta creamy? ›

Add a spoonful of pasta water to help thin the sauce if you want and keep it sticking, because starch helps it to stick and will also keep it as creamy as possible. Stir it often so that it won't stick but will stay creamy. Just before serving it, add a small pat of butter and a hint of cream on top. That's it.

What to put on pasta when you have no sauce? ›

Cheese is an excellent way to add flavor to your pasta without having to rely on sauce. Try mixing your angel hair pasta with goat cheese, and toss in sun-dried tomatoes to make an amazing meal with just a few ingredients. Garlic butter is a terrific way to season all types of noodles.

What is the secret to good pasta? ›

Wait until the water comes to a rapid, aggressive boil before adding your pasta. Throwing in the pasta too early when the water isn't hot enough can result in some sticky, gummy noodles. Patience, friend. Stir right away — and every couple minutes.

Do Italians use basil or parsley? ›

Basil (basilico, in Italian) is another major herb in Italian cuisine, like parsley. Though it is most commonly linked with Italian cooking, it actually came to Europe by way of the spice trade from India.

What goes with spaghetti, parsley or basil? ›

Basil: Basil is a classic herb in Italian cuisine and pairs perfectly with pasta.

Do basil and parsley taste good together? ›

Basil, with its bold and aromatic profile, meets its perfect match in the fresh and slightly peppery notes of Parsley. Together, they bring a harmonious balance that can transform a simple meal into a culinary masterpiece.

When should I add parsley to pasta? ›

Toss the pasta and allow the residual heat to melt the butter. Toss until the pasta is coated in the melted butter. Add the parsley and Parmesan mixture to the pasta and toss to coat again. The pasta should be very warm at this point but not hot enough to melt the Parmesan.

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