Penne Pasta with Tomato-Cream Vodka Sauce
Our family calls this recipe penne pasta with vodka sauce, but it's commonly known as penne alla vodka. The recipe below is loosely based on a recipe my mother tore from a fancy cooking magazine claiming to be THE recipe used at a specialty trattoria in Florence, Italy. Like many of the recipes on this blog, we've changed the way we make it over the years and now it's our family's style. Below is officially our family's style of penne pasta with vodka sauce. Ingredients 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 4 fresh garlic cloves, minced ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, to taste Salt, a pinch 2 tablespoons of fresh basil or 1 tablespoon dried 1- 28oz. can peeled Italian plum tomatoes in juice, chopped coarsely ( Cento San Marzano are great); mostly drained 1 pound dried penne pasta 2 tablespoons vodka 1 cup heavy whipping cream 2- 14 oz smoked sausage, such as polska kielbasa , sliced and sauteed Directions In an unheated skilled or sauce pot large enough to ho
