spicy vodka sauce

I recommend Bon Appetit’s take on the Jon & Vinny’s spicy vodka pasta to everyone. It is my ultimate ULTIMATE comfort food and now it’ll live here too (w one minor tweak).

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• 1 small shallot

• 1 garlic clove, grated

• ½ cup tomato paste

• 2 tbsp vodka

• 1 cup heavy cream

• 1 tsp red pepper flakes

• salt

• pepper

• 1 lb pasta (fresh or dry, I like something that is a tube or has a texture for the sauce to hang out with)

• 2 tbsp unsalted butter

• 1 cup pasta water

• 1 oz freshly grated parm (plus more for garnish)

• fresh basil

Step by Step

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil while you make your sauce.

2. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a skillet. Add the shallot and garlic and saute for 5 minutes. I turn the heat down after 2 minutes so nothing burns.

3. Add the tomato paste and stir with the shallot & onion mixture for about 4 minutes. Consistently stir this so it turns ‘brick red’. Idk what this means so I just stir it because it doesn’t really change color.

4. Add the vodka and mix together until the liquid is mostly gone, about 2-3 minutes.

5. Add the heavy cream and the red pepper flakes and whisk together to emulsify the sauce. This takes about five minutes, be gentle. Season with salt and pepper and take off the heat.

6. Once your pasta is boiling and hits. aldente or a little over, use a spider spoon to transfer it directly to your vodka sauce. Don’t forget to reserve a cup of the pasta water!

7. Add the pasta, butter, parm, and ⅓ cup of pasta water to start. Mix and let it all come together. It will loosen at first and then really stick to the pasta after a few minutes. If it is too thick, continue adding the pasta water until your desired sauce thickness. Check for seasoning.

8. Transfer your pasta to bowls, add more parm, torn basil and red pepper flakes if you want.