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This creamy penne pasta recipe is a super quick and simple dish that’s ready in about 20 minutes! It’s great for a meatless main course or side.
Love penne recipes? Try my Penne alla Vodka Recipe, this Chicken Penne Pasta, or my Baked Penne next.
Why you’ll love it
A piping hot bowl of this creamy garlic penne recipe can be on your table in as long as it takes to boil and cook the pasta. It uses ingredients you’re likely to have on hand already in your fridge and pantry. My kinda weeknight meal!
While you can dress up this penne pasta recipe with a protein, it’s absolutely delicious as-is with balanced flavors in the irresistibly creamy sauce. This one might be the very definition of a quick and easy pasta, and it’s a favorite among kids and picky eaters too.
What you’ll need
- Penne – this tube-shaped pasta is the perfect vessel for the sauce
- Butter and flour – to make a quick roux
- Garlic – we’re pretty generous, but add even more if you’re a garlic lover
- Wine or broth – a dry white wine like sauvignon blanc or pinot grigio adds a fancy touch, but chicken broth works just fine too
- Lemon juice – a tiny amount of freshly squeezed lemon juice helps the sauce taste a little less one-dimensional. It adds acidity and brightness.
- Heavy cream – for that luscious quality in the sauce
- Italian seasoning – my favorite variety of dried herbs that’s really versatile and all in a single jar
- Parmesan – I recommend grating your own parmesan cheese. It melts and tastes better than the pre-grated kind.
Pro tips
- This is a pretty basic garlic cream sauce, so you can definitely add more seasonings if you feel like it. You need a decent amount of salt in cream sauces (or else they can be a bit bland), so don’t be shy. Taste and adjust!
- If the sauce gets too thick, add in a splash of the hot pasta water to thin it out. Keep in mind that cream sauces thicken up more as they cool.
How to make creamy penne pasta
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Boil the pasta. Meanwhile, in a skillet, melt the butter and stir in the flour to make a roux. Add the garlic, wine, and lemon juice. Cook until thickened/reduced by half. Whisk in the cream and Italian seasoning.
Continue cooking until the sauce is desired thickness, then remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the parmesan cheese, season generously with salt & pepper, and then add the drained pasta to the skillet and toss until coated. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley.
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- This garlic press makes it simple to mince the cloves.
- Storing and measuring out butter is easy with this butter dish.
- I always keep a block of parmesan in my fridge and use my Microplane to grate it.
Substitutions and variations
- I don’t recommend subbing the cream with a lower fat alternative as the sauce may curdle and/or not thicken as well.
- You could definitely add some Cooked Chicken or shrimp to this sauce. Readers have also added in crumbled Oven Cooked Bacon to make it extra special.
- Feel free to swap out the penne for another shape of pasta if you wish. Rigatoni or a similar size would be best.
What to serve with creamy penne
- If serving it as a main course, round out the meal with Cheesy Garlic Bread, garlic knots, or breadsticks.
- A side salad is a great fresh complement. My Easy Caesar Salad Dressing is always a good idea.
- As a side dish, pair this easy penne with Easy Baked Chicken Breast, this Easy Baked Pork Tenderloin, or Salmon Patties.
Leftovers and storage
- Store any leftovers of this penne pasta in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days max.
- When reheating, you may need to give it an extra splash of wine or broth. Warm it up in a saucepan over a low heat.
- I don’t suggest freezing leftovers of this one. The texture of the garlic cream sauce won’t be the same.
Questions about this simple penne pasta recipe? Talk to me in the comments! I’d love it if you left a star rating and review below. You can also tag me #saltandlavender on Instagram.
Creamy Penne Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 ounces uncooked penne
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 tablespoon flour
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 cup dry white wine or chicken/veg broth
- 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 cup heavy/whipping cream
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Chopped parsley optional, to taste
Instructions
- Boil a salted pot of water for the pasta and cook it al dente according to package directions.
- When the pasta is about 10 minutes away from being done, add the butter to a skillet over medium-high heat. Once it melts, sprinkle the flour in and cook for about 1 minute, stirring fairly often.
- Add in the garlic, followed by the wine (or broth) and lemon juice. Let it bubble until it's reduced by half (about 30 sec – 1 minute).
- Whisk in the cream so the flour dissolves completely, then stir in the Italian seasoning. Cook it for a few minutes until the sauce has thickened up to your liking.
- Stir in the parmesan cheese and take the skillet off the heat. Season with salt & pepper as needed (I am generous with both).
- Add the drained pasta to the skillet and toss until coated (I like to add a tablespoon or so of the pasta water to the sauce prior to draining it, especially if it's become a tad too thick). Garnish with more parmesan and a bit of chopped parsley if you like. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Serves 2-4 depending on how hungry people are/what else you serve it with.
- This is a very simple garlic cream pasta sauce. You can definitely jazz it up more by adding additional seasonings if you wish.
- I don’t recommend subbing the cream for a lower fat alternative. It may not thicken the same, so you may need to adjust cooking time/add more flour.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Could I make a day ahead? Serving to large gathering
Hi! This one is best fresh. Cream sauces can be a bit finicky unfortunately. There are reheating instructions in the blog post, though. I would definitely boil the pasta up fresh if you do decide to make the sauce ahead of time.
Please tell me a substitute for Parmesan. I love pasta, but when you put Parmesan in or on it, the strong flavor just pushes my off button. What kind of milder flavor can I use?
Hi! Hmmmmmm I am not a big cheese person myself, but I do like parmesan. That’s a tough one. Do you use freshly grated from the block? It’s much better than the ones you can buy in the can. You could try manchego or Grana Padano, but you might not like those either. You could just skip it. A bit of mozzarella could work to add meltiness, but it won’t add much flavor.
My whole family loved it💜 Thank you for another great recipe!
You’re very welcome Danielle!
Yum, I did make a few adjustments to make it work for my household. I added veggies; mushrooms, capsicum & zucchini & also cooked bacon to add later for those who eat meat. Loved by my family
That’s great!! 😀 Thank you!
Best pasta recipe ever
Thank you, Gail!! 😀
This recipe was very quick and easy. I did add bacon, broccoli and chicken which I cooked with blackened seasoning. Because of all this added stuff, the sauce didn’t go as far as I’d like since there wasn’t much sauce to sop up with garlic bread. Definitely a keeper. Thank you
Glad you liked it! 😀
Everyone loved this pasta, will definitely make again.
Wonderful! Thank you! 🙂
I used fresh herbs and it was spectacular!!!!
That’s fantastic! 😀
Fantastic taste , very easy to prepare for those on a time frame .
I added Elk ribeye sautéed in red wine and butter with garlic. Slices and added to finished pasta.
That sounds awesome!!
Delicious recipe, fast & easy! Added carrots, green beans, and broccoli because that is what was in the refrigerator. My family loved it! Thank you!
You’re very welcome!!