A simple pan sauce is the base of this simple, elegant Pasta with Prosciutto, Arugula and Feta. Spaghetti is tossed in the pan with olive oil, garlic, arugula, lime juice, capers and prosciutto. But what really sets this dish apart the marinated feta. Marinate the feta ahead of time and your pasta can be ready in 15 minutes!
Why I love this recipe
This Pasta with prosciutto recipe is easy to throw together and it's definitely worthy of a special occasion. Made with top of-of-the-line ingredients and exciting flavors, this dish always brings excitement to the table.
Tangy lime juice, salty savory prosciutto, peppery arugula, rich creamy feta — all twirled with al dente spaghetti and so, so good.
This recipe comes from one of my favorite cookbooks: Donna Hay: Flavors. Hay calls this recipe "spaghetti with lime and rocket." Rocket is the same thing as arugula, just called by a different name.
If you're not familiar with Donna Hay, she's an Australian cookbook author and food stylist. I love her recipes - she uses simple, fresh ingredients and combines in the most wonderful ways.
How To Make It
Marinate The Feta
Whisk up a simple marinade of olive oil, garlic, salt, red pepper flakes and thyme. Toss cubed feta with the mixture and marinate it for at least an hour or up to 3 days, in the fridge. Once the feta is marinated, this recipe comes together in less than 15 minutes!
Cut the Arugula Into Ribbons
The easiest way to do this is to arrange the leaves so they're all facing in one direction, and cut across them. Even better, if you have the patience, is to stack the leaves and slice the stack thinly, crosswise. If you're using baby arugula, just give it a rough chop.
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Prep the rest of the ingredients
Chop the prosciutto, zest the limes, mince the garlic, chop the jalapeño and rinse the capers.
Boil the pasta and make the pan sauce
While the pasta is boiling, heat up your skillet and sauté the garlic, lime zest, capers, jalapeños and prosciutto for 2-3 minutes.
Drain the pasta it and add it to the skillet and toss over the heat for a minute or two, until everything is combined and heated through. Add the lime juice and shredded arugula and toss well.
Serve
Divide the pasta among serving plates and top with marinated feta and fresh ground pepper.
Other company-worthy pasta dishes to try:
If you try this pasta with prosciutto recipe, I hope you'll come back to leave a star rating and a comment. I'd love to know what you think!
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Pasta with prosciutto, arugula and feta
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 5 Servings 1x
Description
A very special pasta dish with bright flavors of arugula, prosciutto, feta and lime juice. Easy to prepare. Company worthy.
Ingredients
For The Marinated Feta
- 8-ounces feta cheese (packed in brine)
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 clove crushed garlic
- A pinch of fresh thyme leaves (optional)
For The Pasta
- 1 pound spaghetti or linguini
- Kosher salt
For The Pan Sauce
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus extra for adding to pasta
- 2 large cloves garlic, finely minced or put through a garlic press
- The zest of 2 limes*
- 3 tablespoons small capers, rinsed
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped
- 6 ounces sliced prosciutto, cut into ½-inch dice
- 5-7 ounces arugula, leaves stacked and slivered (if using baby arugula, you can chop the leaves or just add them whole)
- 4 tablespoons fresh lime juice*
- Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste
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Instructions
Marinate The Feta
- Dice feta into ½-inch cubes and place a non-reactive bowl or plastic container.*
- In a small bowl, whisk oil, garlic, salt, red pepper flakes and thyme (if using). Toss feta with mixture and let it marinate for at least an hour or up to three days. If marinating for more than an hour, cover and store in the fridge.
Cook The Pasta
- Fill a large pot with generously salted water and bring to a boil. Cook pasta until al dente and drain.
Make The Pan Sauce
- Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic, lime zest, capers, and chopped jalapeño. Cook for a minute or so, until the garlic is fragrant.
- Add the diced prosciutto and cook, stirring, until the prosciutto is crisp, 2-3 minutes.
- Add cooked pasta to the skillet plus 1 tablespoon olive oil. Toss for a minute or two, until everything is combined and heated through.
- Add lime juice and shredded arugula. Toss to combine. Season with salt, to taste.
Serve
- Divide pasta among shallow bowls. Top with cubes of marinated feta and some freshly ground black pepper.
Notes
- Marinated Feta can be made up to three days ahead. Cover tightly and store in the fridge. Bring to room temperature before using.
- Zest the limes before juicing them. Some limes are juicier than others so, although you only need the zest of 2 limes for this recipe, you may need as many as 4 limes in order to get enough lime juice.
- Nutrition Disclaimer: We do our best to provide accurate nutrition values using an online nutrition calculator however our nutrition information should only be used as an approximation.
- Prep Time: 30 min
- Feta Marinating: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Pasta
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Australian
This recipe first appeared on Panning The Globe on September 13, 2013. I have updated it with clearer directions in the recipe card. In the post, I added a walk-through of the recipe with photos. I've also tweaked the written post to make it clearer and more helpful. The same delicious recipe!
fabulous recipe and a keeper for sure. I did not find arugula so I tossed in some kale with the pan items. turned out great
So glad you like it! Good to know it works with kale, too.
Nailed this recipe on the first try and my family loved it! I went all out with the marinating, three full days. I have no idea if it made this any better but I loved the idea of my feta hanging out in the fridge getting ready all that time for the big day. The flavors all work great together, especially the lime juice. Five stars for sure!
This was delicious, easy and healthy. I loved the presentation and the marinated feta took it over the top. I have some feta left over - going on a salad tonight. Thanks for the great recipe.
I'm so glad you enjoyed! Thank you for your comment.
wow! prosciutto, cheese, jalepeno, lime juice, what more do I need? Oh yeah....PASTA! This recipe rocks my socks. One of my favorites ever and so easy to riff on
Argula and feta work so well together. I love the wonderful combination of ingredients. This looks so healthy
Super yum! I'm a huge fan of Donna Hay and this recipe looks amazing!
Thank you Carol 🙂
I love mixing prosciutto with greens in pasta...this looks delicious!! Perfect easy weeknight dinner!
Wow, really enjoyed this dish! My wife loved the combination of flavors. it is easy to make and easily could be something that could be served to guests. Thanks for the great recipie!
I'm so glad you and your wife enjoyed the pasta Dave! I agree about it being special enough to serve to guests - I've done it!
Lisa,
I was determined to make something last night that I had all the ingredients for already in the house. This was it! So delicious and a big hit with my family. I have a few of Donna Hay's books and love her. I actually think I have this one. I will have to get it out and start using it again. Clear case of too many cookbooks.
Peggy
I love Donna Hay's cookbooks so much! And I, too, have too many cookbooks! Every couple of years I pull out my Donna Hay's and cook a bunch of her her recipes. The pasta with arugula, prosciutto and feta is one of my favorites!
My wife made this over the weekend! Amazing! Kids loved it as well. This is definitely going to be a staple in our house.
Chris I'm so glad everybody enjoyed it! When you put unusual ingredients like arugula and capers in pasta, you're probably crossing your fingers that the kids will like it. 🙂
I made this dish this weekend and both Geoff and I loved it. Easy to make, especially with baby arugula. Will definitely make it again!