Lemony Mafaldine Pasta with Caramelized Cabbage

This mafaldine pasta recipe features buttery, caramelized cabbage, chili flakes, capers, and lemon. It’s an addictive pantry pasta that’s savory and oh-so comforting. Best of all, it’s easy enough for a last-minute weeknight dinner.

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Mafaldine is a gorgeous ribbon-like dried pasta with curly edges similar to those on a sheet of lasagna. Imagine pappardelle, but with crimped sides; best of all, those ruffled edges are perfect for clinging to hearty sauces! Ever since I first tried this shape, I truly fell in love with it!

Recently, I’ve been seeing loads of fun ways to dress up cabbage beyond the classic slaw or steamed version, from a “cacio e pepe” riff to a tahini-smothered charred variation. I love the classic combination of buttery cabbage, and being a pasta girl, I thought, why not make a pasta dish out of it?

👩🏽‍🍳 Cook’s Notes

• A slew of fragrant aromatics, like anchovies, garlic, red chili flakes, capers, and lemon zest, infuse the olive oil and butter.
• Cabbage and onion slowly cook down and tenderize, then caramelize after losing all of their moisture. The resulting texture is soft, sweet, and savory.
• The softened vegetables and aromatics cling to mafaldine because of its ribbony shape, yielding a saucy, slurpable texture. It’s truly one of my favorite pastas!

For more delicious pasta recipes, try my spicy spaghetti, fettuccine alfredo without heavy cream, or blistered tomato pasta.

Ingredient Notes

• Chili Flakes: This is a spicy dish, so I call for ¾ teaspoon red pepper flakes. But if you like things milder, feel free to adjust!
• Cabbage: Cabbage is really the star in this recipe. I recommend using white or green cabbage here, as opposed to red varieties. This is a great way to use up a lot of cabbage!
• Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese: I add a bit of parmesan cheese to the sauce right at the end for saltiness and creaminess. You can use pecorino romano in a pinch!

For a full list of ingredients and quantities, refer to the recipe card.

How to Make This Recipe

Step 1: Saute the aromatics: Saute the garlic, chili flakes, anchovy filets, and capers in the butter and oil. Once the mixture smells aromatic and the butter begins to bubble, you can proceed to the next step.

Step 2: Next, add the lemon zest, cabbage, and onion. It may appear like there are a TON of vegetables in the pan; this is expected!

Use tongs to toss the cabbage and onion and coat them with the buttery aromatics.

Step 3: I usually toss continuously for a minute or so, and as you’re tossing, the vegetables will immediately begin to wilt and shrink in size.

Saute them over medium-low heat until they’ve released most of their liquid and you start seeing some browning on the bottom and sides of the pan.

Step 3: Continue sauteing for 10 minutes, frequently scraping any brown bites on the sides or bottom of the pot. Adjust the heat as needed to lightly caramelize (but not burn) the vegetables.

Step 4: As you finish sauteing the vegetables, keep scraping any browned bits on the sides and bottom of the pan.

Step 5: Cook the pasta: Cook the pasta and reserve some pasta water for the sauce. Combine pasta with the golden brown vegetables. Add a bit of pasta water at a time to loosen the sauce, and continue tossing everything together.

Step 6 – Serve! Off the heat, stir in the cheese, season to taste, and divide amongst serving bowls. Top with fresh herbs, lemon juice (as desired) and more cheese.

P.S. If you’re looking for a vegetarian protein, might I suggest serving this with my Italian beans?

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