Penne with Vodka Sauce is rich in flavor with ricotta and sausage baked into an amazing vodka sauce.This meal is going to be your new best friend. The perfect make ahead casserole to enjoy at home or take to a friend.
While I enjoy lasagna, it has a lot of red sauce. After trying a vodka sauce at an Italian restaurant in DC, I really wanted to experiment making it at home. This recipe for penne with vodka sauce or penne alla vodka is one of my new favorites that I make over and over again.
After making it the first time, I’ve gone back to this recipe so many times. I took it to a friend who was under the weather, and made it again over Spring Break when Natalie was home. I made a double batch so she could take some home and have dinner with her friends back at school. It’s really easy to double this recipe and it makes great left overs.
Everyone just raves about this recipe, and I have to admit, I love the combination of flavors. It has become my go to dinner for when friends are coming over or the kids are coming home. All you need is a salad and a loaf of French bread.
It’s a bit like lasagna but easier and the vodka sauce puts this over the top. With pasta alla Vodka, the sauce has a bit of cream, which cuts down on the overpowering red sauce that you see in some Italian dishes, and the vodka adds the most unique flavor.
Of course I used Tiny Cat Vodka from our local distillery. If you’re in the area, you have to check out Fainting Goat Spirits. The tour is super fun and everyone loves Bill and Andrew.
Most penne alla vodka recipes are simply vodka sauce and pasta and don’t contain meat. However, the sausage adds so much flavor to this hearty casserole, I would not leave it out.
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Vodka adds a delicious and unique flavor to the red sauce
- This easily doubles for a great recipe to deliver to someone who needs something special or if your feeding a crowd.
- You can make it ahead and freeze.
- Similar to lasagna but creamier.
What you’ll need
Alla Vodka Sauce
- Sweet Italian & Hot Italian Sausage – the mix kicks up your pasta dish!
- Onions – lots of onions, lots of flavor.
- Vodka – this is a unique flavor in the sauce that’s memorable.
- Whole tomatoes crushed with their juice – this is an important ingredient to your sauce, Italian like San Marzano are the best if you can find them.
- Spices – cayenne, dried thyme, fresh basil
- Cream – this breaks up the sauce and gives it the signature pink look a vodka sauce is known for.
Cheese
- Penne pasta -it’s what is traditional served with this sauce but I actually prefer a larger pasta.
- Ricotta cheese – if you have an Italian market, see if they have ricotta, it is amazing. It is still fantastic with the type you can find at the grocery.
- Pantry staples – garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper
How do you make penne with vodka sauce
Step 1
To make this amazing casserole, you start out by cooking the Italian sausage then add onions and seasoning and finally the vodka along with some crushed tomatoes. This will simmer for 40 minutes and then you will add the cream.
Step 2
While the sauce is cooking, you cook the penne and add the cooked pasta to a mixture of ricotta, parmesan and olive oil.
Once the pasta is well coated, the meat sauce is added and you dump it into a casserole dish and cover with cheese.
Step 3
Bake for about 45 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and golden
The sauce has to simmer for about 40 minutes but its hands off after about 20 minutes of prep time. The result is a rich and creamy dinner that makes enough to share.
I found the original recipe in one of Food & Wine Best of the Best. These books contain recipes from 25 cookbooks that they have compiled into a book. This way you get to sample recipes to help you decide whether to buy the individual cookbooks. This recipe was from Emeril’s Potluck. I found several recipes in this compilation that were real keepers. What a great way to check out some cookbooks. You can grab the older versions for less than $10.00 on Amazon.
This is a great dish to take make ahead. Just assemble it and put it in the freezer. Then if you need to take dinner to a friend or maybe a new mom, you’re all set. If you’re in a hurry and on’t have time to let a sauce simmer for 40 minutes, you can try spaghetti alla vodka which uses a prepared vodka sauce.
Recipe tips
- You can substitute shallots for a slightly milder onion flavor. They are smaller than white or yellow onions, so grab a couple.
- If you don’t like a lot of heat, substitute mild sausage for the spicy.
- Half and half can be substituted for heavy cream if you want to lighten up the sauce a bit.
FAQs and tips
While all of the sauce will not burn off, there is not enough to affect anyones’ sobriety.
The base of the pasta sauce is crushed tomatoes, vodka, heavy cream, onions and sometimes peas. Often you’ll see sausage, chicken or pancetta added for a heartier meal.
Italian sausage and hot sausage are seasoned meats that add so much flavor to this sauce.
Yes, you can use gf pasta. However, you might need to reduce the cooking time on the pasta so it doesn’t become gummy or mushy. Keep an eye on it as its cooking to test its doneness.
Since the sauce is so amazing, choose a pasta that can grab the sauce. Any tubular pasta, or even elbow pasta will work. A smaller pasta like penne makes it easier to eat.
Yes, you can use dried basil if fresh is not available. Since dried basil is more concentrated, you will need to use half as much or ⅛ cup of dried basil.
Looking for more casserole dinners
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Penne with Vodka Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 lb sweet Italian sausage
- 1 lb hot Italian sausage
- 4 cups onions thinly sliced, about 2-3 onions
- ¼ cup fresh basil thinly sliced
- salt and pepper
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ½ cup vodka
- 28 ounce can whole tomatoes with the uice
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne
- ½ cup cream
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb penne pasta
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 cup parmesan cheese grated
- 1 ½ cups mozzarella cheese grated
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large dutch oven or large skillet over high heat. Remove casing from sausages and add to pan breaking apart as they cook. Cook until browned, about 5 minutes. Add onions and salt and pepper. Cook until onions have softened, about 5 minutes. Add basil and garlic and cook for an additional minute. Add vodka and crush tomatoes with your hands. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally for 40 minutes. Add thyme, cayenne and heavy cream, stir to combine and simmer for 5 minutes.
- While cooking, cook pasta with a tablespoon of olive oil and salt until al dente. Drain.
- In a large bowl combine half of the ricotta cheese and half of the parmesan and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the pasta and toss to coat. Add the sausage mixture and mix well. Add the remaining ricotta and parmesan and mix well. Pour into a 9 x 13 inch baking dish and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake until bubbly and golden, about 45 minutes.
Barbara’s Tips + Notes
- You can substitute shallots for a slightly milder onion flavor. They are smaller than white or yellow onions, so grab a couple.
- If you don’t like a lot of heat, substitute mild sausage for the spicy.
- Half and half can be substituted for heavy cream if you want to lighten up the sauce a bit.
- If you have access to an Italian market, try to buy your ricotta there. It will be fresh and much better than what you can find at the grocery.
Nutrition
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Do you break up the tomatoes? I’m making it tomorrow
Yes, they should be crushed. I do this with my hands. Hope you enjoy it, I love it!