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So many good things to share on this snowy Wednesday!
Thing one, this luscious Penne Alla Vodka. It’s creamy, cheesy, a little boozy flavored (but not alcoholy cause all of the vodka cooks out), SUPER EASY and DELICIOUS. The sauce is made in the crockpot, so it’s kind of perfect for those nights when all you can muster up the energy to do is boil some pasta and call it a day…aka TODAY.
I’m feeling like since it’s December, and we’re all still getting used to the cold, that nothing seems more perfect or cozier than a giant bowl of pasta, sauce and cheese. Just add some crusty bread, maybe a warm fire and call it a day…literally. I’m saying all this because it’s currently snowing like crazy out (lovin’ it) and I am currently huddled by my heater, staying all toasty warm but wishing I had a bowl of this pasta in front of me. <-truth. Anybody in the same boat or what? I hear you midwest people got some snow…are you loving it or hating it?
For me, the entire month of December should be filled with snowy days and nights. It’s just one more excuse to eat pasta, watch Christmas movies, and drink hot chocolate. Obviously.
Thing two, Monday night was spent watching my little sister, Asher perform in the town play of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child <–seriously. Not sure how my little ski town decided to put on a Harry Potter play, but they did, and it was awesome…or I mean, fun…or I mean, entertaining. Let’s just say it was hard to keep a straight face throughout the performance. None of the kids were older than ten or eleven, so as you can imagine, it’s was a little all over the place. Asher didn’t have many lines, but for one of them, she was standing in the wrong spot on stage (in the dark). The teacher literally picked her up and moved her into the spotlight all while she continued speaking…freaking hilarious. I almost wasn’t going to go because I’m slightly swamped with end of the year work, but when Asher called to ask me to come, I just could not say no. Glad I went too, because it was so fun to see Asher in the play. I’m clearly biased, but she was the best…and the cutest!
Plus, I finally got to see my younger brother, Red who’s been traveling for over a month. It was a short catch up, but I mean, at least I got to say hey to the kid, right?
This would have been the perfect dinner to have waiting for everyone at home, but the fam all decided they wanted to go out. I unfortunately had to get home to finish some things up, so I got to drive home solo in the snow storm. Luckily I’m used to the snow and have good tires. In all honesty, I have seen worse weather around here (I just don’t usually have to drive in it!), but I really enjoyed seeing all the Christmas lights in Breckenridge that seemed to highlight the falling snow. <–major dork alert.
Anyway, this penne alla vodka has been my go-to dish to make on Sunday nights and then serve the leftovers throughout the week. This dish makes a lot of sauce so it’s great the first night served over pasta, but then you could totally get creative with the leftovers. I’m talking pizza, pasta bakes, served with eggs, the options are kind of endless!
If you’re serving this to kids, don’t worry about the alcohol, it all gets burned off during cooking (first you boil the sauce, and then you cook it for a min of 4 hours!). All that you’re left with is a deliciously flavored tomato sauce.
A must do with this dish though? Top it with lots and lots of freshly grated parmesan and serve it with crusty bread for scooping up extra sauce.
SOO GOOD.
Crockpot Sun-Dried Tomato Penne Alla Vodka.
Servings: 6 servings
Calories Per Serving: 582 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 sweet onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced or grated
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 cup vodka
- 2 (28 ounce) cans whole tomatoes I like San Marzano
- 1/2 cup oil packed sun-dried tomatoes drained (see note)
- kosher salt and pepper
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 pound penne pasta
- 4 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil, onion, garlic, crushed red pepper, and dried oregano in a large skillet over medium low heat. Cook, stirring often until the onion is soft and the garlic fragrant, about 10 minutes. Add the vodka, raise the heat, and bring the mixture to a boil, boil 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and add to the bowl of your crockpot along with the tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes and large pinch of salt + pepper. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4-5 hours. Transfer the sauce to a blender and puree until smooth. Return to the crockpot and stir in the the cream and the parmesan. Cook uncovered on high for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and boil the pasta until al dente according to package directions. Drain.
- Divide the pasta among plates and top with the sauce, fresh oregano and grated parmesan. Eat!
Notes
*You can use the oil from the sun-dried tomato jar in place of the 1/4 cup olive oil.
ps. since you already have the vodka out, may I recommend these festive Pomegranate Moscow Mules?! Happy Wednesday!
My Family Loved It!
I am so glad they did! Thank you Jeff!
I bookmarked this recipe a while ago and have been meaning to try it since summer but its the kind of recipe you save for a cold day you need to liven up with warm creamy goodness! I woke up early to sautee the onion and garlic and just threw it in the crockpot and forgot about it until my boyfriend texted me while on his lunch break that he had stopped home to grab a few things for work, tried the sauce and…. drumroll… “best sauce ever, hands down”. So excited to go home and try this!
*side note* there is a recipe for vodka sauce that has been circulating since the 90’s amongst single women in NY that is supposed to guarantee you to get laid, This might be the real, true recipe!
Haha oh wow! I am so happy you and your boyfriend loved this! Thank you so much!
Can the sauce recipe be used for spaghetti ie spaghetti & meatballs ? Thanks.
Yes, that will be delicious! Please let me know if you have any other questions. Hope you love this recipe! 🙂
Question about the recipe. It says 2 ounce cans whole tomatoes. Is that all we need is 2 ounces of tomatoes?
Carol
So sorry! Nope, you need a 28 ounce can. Recipe has been fixed. Let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this! 🙂
I made this shortly after you posted it on Instagram and it was DELICIOUS. I added shrimp, too. Thank you!
Sounds delish! So happy you liked it Natalie! Thank you!
This looks so delicious! Is it possible to skip the blending step? Or is it super crucial?
You can skip the blending, no biggie! Hope you love this! 🙂
Just made this….so amazing! I love finding other things to put in my crockpot!
I am so glad you loved it! Thank you Julie!
Halved the recipe and it was plenty for three. Terrific! I’m a huge fan of yours. All my reviews are raves. Hope you don’t mind.
Wow! SO nice of you! Thanks so much David!
We made this the other night and it was amazzzzzzing! There’s only two of us so next time we’lol probably make a half recipe though. Can this be frozen & reheated without losing any quality in the sauce? Or, roughly how long can we keep it in the fridge? I plan on eating this for a couple of weeks. 😀 Oh and any suggestions for other uses with it?
Er, “we’ll”, not we’lol!
Hi Lauren! The sauce freezes great, just don’t freeze it with the pasta. I would say that the sauce will last a week in the fridge. As for other uses I use this sauce for pizza, dipping bread, a base for soups or served with grilled cheese. Let me know if you have other questions. Hope you and your family had a Merry Christmas!
Just finished making this dish to take to a “booze” themed potluck – THE best sauce EVER! The hardest part was smelling the sauce cooking all day! This will be the only tomato sauce I make from now on. Thank you for this great recipe!
Hi April, thank you so so much!! So happy you like it!
Hi Tieghan!
I made this a few nights ago and it was DELICIOUS! I served it with some grilled turkey sausages on the side for my husband. I froze the leftover sauce to enjoy next week! Thank you for a great recipe!
Hi Kristen!! I’m so happy you liked it!!
Sounds super yummy!! Thanks so much!!
Made this last night. It was subtly delicious. The recipe does make a very large amount of sauce so tonight we are going to use the leftovers and add pan seared shrimp. Keep the great recipes coming.
So happy you liked it Mark! It does make a lot but who doesn’t love leftovers! Thanks!!
This was my dinner tonight to test run for Christmas dinner when we have (as we always do) vegetarian and omnivore diners. This was delicious and will be on the menu for sure. The bonus is that it is made in the slow cooker so I have an extra burner on the stove and I can put it together well ahead of time. I wonder if it would freeze well. Thanks for a great recipe!
Hi! So happy you loved this! The sauce freezes great! Just add the pasta to the hot sauce once it is thawed. Let me know if you have questions! Thanks again!
I made this tonight and let me tell you, it was DELICIOUS!! Thanks Tieghan for another amazing recipe! ?
Thank you so much!! So happy you liked it!! (:
I made this a few days ago and it’s amazing. By the way, I made a pound of pasta and still had a ton of sauce left. I made another pound of pasta yesterday and used up all the sauce. Pretty awesome as leftovers for lunches. Thank you!
So happy you liked it and were able to make to meals of it!! Thanks so much KP!
Hello! We’ve been following your blog and you make the BEST recipes! We’re living in Russia right now and don’t have access to a crock pot. Do you have any suggestions for cooking this on the stove? Thank you in advance!
Hey Lauren! Thank you so much, so happy you enjoy my recipes! To cook this one the stove, J=just simmer on the stove over low for 3 or so hours or in a 250 degree oven for 3-4 hours. Should work great! Let me know if you have questions. Thanks!