Rigatoni alla Vodka w/out the Vodka
This Rigatoni alla Vodka sauce is so quick and easy to make and I make it withoutthe vodka. This isn't your traditional alla vodka sauce, my boyfriend and I have tweaked it over the years to how we like it. I hope you love it as much as we do!
Ingredients
- 1 lb Rigatoni pasta or any short tubular pasta such as penne
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter I use grassfed butter
- 1 medium white onion, diced
- 1 shallot, diced
- 5-8 cloves garlic, thinnly sliced
- 6 oz can of tomato paste
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ cup fresh Parmesan cheese, grated
- ½ cup fresh Pecorino Romano cheese, grated
- ½ cup fresh basil, chopped
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes depends how spicy you want it
- ½ tsp italian seasoning
- ¼ tsp dried oregano
- ½ cup pasta water
- ½ lemon, juiced optional
Instructions
- Cut the onion, shallot, garlic, and basil. In a large sauce pan, melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium heat. Add the diced onion, shallot, and garlic. Season with salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, and dried oregano. Cooking the spices with the onions and garlic is crucial for flavor! Stir until onions are soft, about minutes.
- Add the tomato paste and cook until it turns darker and fragrant. About 3 minutes
- In a medium pot, add water and salt and bring that to a boil. You want that water as salty as the ocean! Add pasta and cook until just shy of al dente, about 2-3 minutes less than the package directs.
- Add heavy cream and bring to a light simmer. Tip: you want the sauce to come to a simmer slowly rather than start to bubble right away after adding the heavy cream.
- Let the sauce simmer until it has reduced and thickened, then add in your grated cheese and stir.
- Add remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and stir in 1/2 cup of pasta water then add pasta and stir in basil
- Spoon pasta into a bowl and top with additional Parmesan cheese. Add salt if needed.