My Grandmother’s Penne a la Vodka

🧂 Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 large garlic cloves

  minced
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup vodka
• 2 cups marinara or tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
• 12 ounces penne or rigatoni

Instructions

• 1 Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until just
  al dente (I usually undercook by a minute), then drain, reserving 1/2 cup water.
• 2 While the water is coming to a boil, heat a large skillet
  [https://amzn.to/2Qe0IJw] over medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the garlic
  and red pepper flakes and cook, about 30 seconds or so, until just fragrant.
• 3 Add in the vodka and cook until about half of the vodka is evaporated, stirring
  occasionally.
• 4 Stir in the marinara, salt, pepper, half and half, and cook for 5 minutes,
  stirring occasionally, until the sauce has come together. Stir in the parmesan
  cheese and mascarpone cheese and keep stirring until the mascarpone has melted
  into the sauce.
• 5 Add the cooked pasta to the sauce along with a splash of the pasta water and
  toss to combine, adding more pasta water as needed if the sauce is too thick.
• 6 Serve, garnishing with more parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes as desired
  before serving.

Nutrition Info