Asiago Lemon Spaghetti: Spaghetti tossed with lemon and Asiago cheese for an easy and light pasta dish. We served it with a Greek white wine called Malagousia for today’s Wine Pairing Weekend event.
We are mixing it up with this month’s Wine Pairing Weekend theme! We typically focus on a specific type of wine or perhaps a wine region. But this month, hosted by Lori from Dracaena Wines, we are talking about wines that start with the letter “M”.
Sure, there are some obvious choices here, like Merlot or Malbec. But as someone who relishes trying new wine, I had to go off the beaten path for this one.
The timing was perfect. I had recently sampled some 28 wines at the Grand Pairing event hosted by Pairings Wine & Food. I scoured the list of wines from the event, and landed on the bottle of Malagousia for today’s theme. I paired the wine with Asiago Lemon Spaghetti, which I’ll talk about more shortly.
What is Malagousia wine?
Malagousia is a Greek white wine grape rescued from virtual extinction in the 1970s by a professor from Thessaloniki University, as recounted in this Decanter post. Once only found in a few mountain villages, Malagousia can now be found throughout Greece.
Malagousia can range in style from fresh and delicate to more full-bodied styles when it is barrel vinified.
Asiago Lemon Spaghetti
Each wine poured at the Grand Pairing event I mentioned was offered along with a food pairing, which helped thinking about pairings for the Malagousia wine. This Greek wine was served with Asiago cheese, and I recalled the pairing worked well. So I decided to make a dish featuring the cheese.
The Malagousia features citrus notes, so I thought a simple Asiago Lemon Spaghetti dish would highlight the nuanced flavors of the wine.
Making Asiago Lemon Spaghetti is so simple! Shred the Asiago cheese and assemble the short list of other ingredients as the spaghetti cooks. Drain the spaghetti, toss with the other ingredients, and your Asiago Lemon Spaghetti is on the table!
For another simple pasta recipe, try our Greek spaghetti!
Malagousia with Asiago Lemon Spaghetti
We opened the 2016 Domaine Zafeirakis Malagousia ($20, 12.5% ABV) to serve with our Asiago Lemon Spaghetti. Briny on the nose, with lemon fruit, floral undertones and notes of salinity. Medium/light bodied white wine.
As you might imagine, the lemony citrus aspects of the taste profile went well with the lemon spaghetti flavor. The salinity works well with the Asiago cheese, making this a nice pairing.I could also see this Malagousia working well with a light seafood dish.
The Zafeiraki Winery is located in region “Palaiomylos” in Tyrnavos. That location didn’t mean much to me until trying this wine! Tyrnavos is a region near the foot of Mount Olympus, in the middle of mainland Greece. I hear a lot about Olympus and such things due to our son’s interest in Greek mythology. Now I have another reason to be interesting in Greek culture–some wonderful new wines to try!
I definitely enjoyed this Malagousia white wine. I think my mother might too, so if there’s another bottle left at the shop I will have to pick it up to share for Mother’s Day tomorrow!
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Asiago Lemon Spaghetti
Spaghetti tossed with lemon and Asiago cheese for an easy and light pasta dish. This recipe can serve as a side or a light main course along with a green salad.
- Prep Time: 8 mins
- Cook Time: 12 mins
- Total Time: 20 mins
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: pasta
- Method: boiling
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 12 ozs spaghetti
- ⅓ cup Asiago cheese, shredded (plus extra to pass at the table)
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice (or more to taste)
- ⅓ tsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Boil a large pot of water to cook the spaghetti according to package instructions.
- When spaghetti is done, drain and toss immediately with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, garlic powder, and parsley.
- Stir in the Asiago cheese, followed by the lemon just and the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Plate the spaghetti, and offer additional lemon and cheese at the table. Enjoy!
Notes
- Good quality Asiago cheese is key to making the dish a success. Get a block of good Asiago from your favorite local cheese shop or a good cheese department at a grocery store.
- The lemon flavor with the 1 tablespoon of lemon juice is moderate (the amount from about ¼ of a lemon). You could go with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice for more pronounced lemon flavor. Or offer lemon slices at the table so those inclined can add more lemon–that’s what we did and it worked well.
More “M” Wines from Wine Pairing Weekend
Jeff Burrows of FoodWineClick will be discussing “M” is for Marselan
Jill Barth of L’OCCASION explains Monterey Wines For Summertime
Camilla Mann of Culinary Adventures with Camilla enjoyed M is for Mourvèdre with Maple-Glazed Duck Legs
Cindy of Grape Experiences enjoyed an evening Wine and Dine: La Mora Favorites with Margherita Flatbread
Lauren of The Swirling Dervish is chatting about Dry Muscat from Málaga and Pork Paella (Wine#PW)
David of Cooking Chat enjoyed Asiago Lemon Spaghetti with Malagousia Wine from Greece #WinePW
Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm celebrated In the Merry Merry Month of May I Met Magistrate Merlot #WinePW
Gwendolyn of Wine Predator decided M is for Manchego Mac N Cheese and Malbec: 8 Wines, 4 Countries, 3 Continents #WinePW
Nicole on Somm’s Table is Cooking to the Wine: Recanati Marawi with Black Cod and Papaya-Cucumber Salad, Part 1
Lisa, The Wine Chef paired Roast Chicken With Moorooduc Estate Pinot Noir From The Mornington Peninsula – The Best Australian Wine Region You’ve Never Heard Of #WinePW
and Dracaena Wines will be #WinePW Meets #Winephabet Street; M is for Moscatel
Join us next month on June 9th . The topic will be Australian Wines for Summer Grilling and Gwendolyn (@ArtPredator) of winepredator.com is hosting again!!!
Michelle Williams
I just love Greek wine. Delicious pairing David.
Cooking Chat
Thanks Michelle! I’m a fan, too, though I haven’t had it too often.
Lori
I was able to taste Malagousia at a Wines of Greece event in NYC. I enjoyed it also! I can totally see the pairing working. And I love lemon pasta. Such a simple dish full of flavor! I love Asiago cheese.
Cooking Chat
I’d love to get to a Wines of Greece event!
Nicole Ruiz Hudson
I can see that pairing working really well. Looks beautiful and simple! Love the detail as well about how the grape from the base of Mount Olympus.
Lauren Walsh
Don’t think I’ve ever tasted Malagousia, but now I’m eager to try it. Sounds like it would be perfect for summer and the lighter dishes we enjoy when the weather warms up. Another great pairing, David!
Liz Barrett
I ADORE Malagousia and met Evangelos Gerovassiliou, who championed the Malagousia grape back to dominance in the 1970s. What a fabulous pairing idea – you just inspired me for this weekend!
Jill Barth
Greece has a valuable perspective on grape diversity – very cool variety to learn about here, David. Plus, I love what you’ve been doing with lemons lately — very lovely this time of year!
Kelly Anthony
Adding this simple but flavorful pasta dish to our dinner rotation. I’m always looking for a wine pairing so thank you for the wonderful recommendation.
★★★★★
Cooking Chat
Thanks Kelly, we are full of wine pairing ideas here!
Lisa
What an amazing flavor combination to dress up spaghetti noodles!
★★★★★
Cooking Chat
Thanks! It was tasty.
SHANIKA
I’m not too familiar with wine, but this spaghetti looks so delicious and full of flavor!
★★★★★
Cooking Chat
Thanks! It is simple and tasty.
Jessica Formicola
This pasta is so fresh and perfect for summer! I love it!
★★★★★
Whitney
How cool that you’re using a Greek wine for this! This looks absolutely incredible!
Cooking Chat
We enjoy trying interesting wines with our meals!
Neli Howard
I LOVE how easy and delicious this is! Good idea! Looks very tasty! I am going to make this! This recipe really impresses! I really like! Thank you.
★★★★★
Cooking Chat
Thanks Neli! I hope you enjoy it!