whole wheat spaghetti with ricotta and meyer lemon zest + a salad dressing recipe

I've realized that I've been posting a lot about root vegetables lately, and there's more of that to come, but let's not forget that citrus is also at its peak in the winter (frigid 80 degrees that it is here in LA at the moment). So, tonight for dinner, Mike and I had this recipe by Celestino Drago from Food & Wine magazine, which I found through a great website called Mighty Foods. This is a little bit decadent since it's a cream sauce, but it is extreeeemely tasty. The only change we made from the original recipe was in using Meyer lemons instead of regular ones. You may not be able to find these unless you are in California, but use them if you can because Meyer lemons are rather special. They're ony available for a short time each year, and they are quite sweet in comparison with normal lemons. I sliced up some of the lemon after grating the zest off, and used small wedges as a garnish - they were delicious with the creamy, savory sauce. It was a very easy recipe and came together quickly.

Served with a salad, this pasta made for a bright and refreshing dinner. Here's the salad dressing I put together tonight.

DIJON CORIANDER VINAIGRETTE

3-4 Tablespoons olive oil
2-3 Tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
2 heaping teaspoons dijon mustard
salt
pepper
1/4-1/2 teaspoon coriander

This should be enough dressing for two side salads. I actually make it in a little glass and stir it with a fork. Just put everything in together, taste it, and mix it up to the best of your abilities. It's hard to keep the oil and vinegar mixed, so you have to pour a little on one salad, then a little on the other, alternating back and forth to make sure no one ends up with all the oil. I also don't really measure this as I'm doing it, so the above quantities are estimations to guide you in getting the proportions right. Coriander is amazing, by the way. It is made from cilantro seeds, but has a warm, orangey flavor. Chill your salads with dressing on while you make the pasta. It'll be so good!