Warm pasta on a cold night

Hey! This is my 100th post! Pretty cool. Appropriately so, this post is about carbhydrates and alcohol, something anyone following this blog will recognize as highly important to my life.

I was walking home from the Glebe today with one of my nearest and dearest, laden with groceries, chatting away, when to our dismay did it start to hail! I've heard rumours of snow or frozen precipitation here and there but this was the first time I actually saw it. I have noticed the nip in the air, especially on my fingers as I try to send many messages on my blackberry, but I guess I do have to acknowledge that winter is coming. Sigh. At least I have a cute new coat to ward off the chill!

It was thus a good night to make PASTA. Since moving home, my parents have strongly suggested that I should make dinner at least once a week, but its actually not so bad. I've blogged about cooking before and I do enjoy it really, especially as it gives me a chance to make stuff that I really like, or even bid to expand my parent's horizons. Today, I decided to make something that I often order in Italian restaurants and it both seemed fairly straight forward and involved vodka.

I adapted this recipe from one devised by the Pioneer Woman (one of my online faves, I just got her cookbook as well and its both beautiful and delicious) and other recipes I found online.

Vodka rose sauce with penne, prosciutto and mushrooms

Ingredients:

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced and pressed

3-4 large mushrooms, sliced

100 g prosciutto, diced

28 oz can diced tomatoes

1 cup half and half

1 cup vodka (anything but Russian Prince)

Parsley, basil, red pepper flakes, salt, sugar and pepper to taste

2 cups penne

Parmesan

Instructions:

1. Dice the onion, garlic, and saute in a large sauce pan with olive oil, on high heat.
2. Slice the mushrooms. Take strips of prosciutto and slice width wise for somewhat bite-size pieces. Once the garlic and onion has started to go golden, toss in the mushrooms and prosciutto.
3. Pour in vodka and allow everything to simmer for 2-3 minutes.
4. Pour in tomatoes, and add seasonings to taste (I probably added at least 1 tsp of each. The sugar is only if you're finding the sauce somewhat acidic), allowing to simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Get the penne cooking just as the sauce is getting to simmering.
6. Turn down the heat in your sauce pan and pour in the half and half. Stir around, and add more seasonings as needed (I like hot dishes, added more red pepper flakes here), on a continuous low heat, just on the edge of simmering.
7. When the penne is cooked, drain, and pour into your sauce pan. Mix in the pasta and serve immediately in bowls, with parmesan to garnish. Offer either wine or vodka if you've been tippling that while cooking. Enjoy!