Creamy Good Vodka Sauce

with vegan option … Adapted from Little Broken

Super flavorful and wonderfully creamy homemade vodka sauce that’s surprisingly healthy … and if you are lactose intolerant or vegan, I included a vegan version so EVERYONE can have a creamy good vodka sauce.

I never quite got the hype around vodka sauce … until I tried it. One taste and I was in love. I’m not sure how to describe it … of course there’s the tomato and garlic and basil too, but it’s also got a little bite from the vodka (except the alcohol gets cooked off … but still there’s a twist from the vodka that’s incredibly hard to describe), but then after that bite, there’s this glorious creamy cheesy flavor that’s totally irresistible. It’s that kind of sauce you really want to lick off the plate.

Anyway, once I’d tasted vodka sauce, I was totally determined to replicate (and improve!) upon this magical sauce. Especially when I found myself with a plethora of rescued tomatoes from my parents’ “upper garden”. I swear, everything my parents plant grows like mad … even their “leftover” plant seedlings. In their “upper garden”, where they planted the leftover seedlings, they literally had tomatoes rotting on the vine and they were so DONE with canning tomatoes. Something inside of me just can’t leave good food to go to waste if I can help it, so I rescued all the ripe ones and a bunch of the not quite ripe ones and even the green ones, knowing my parents wouldn’t have time or energy before the impending frost to pick them all. (Okay, besides that, I also selfishly wanted some tomatoes to play with.)

I got my wish and then some. It was a little overwhelming. I ate as many fresh tomatoes as I could stand, but as I found other ways to use the excess tomatoes, I found I had to make multiple trips to the store to get more canning jars. I made salsa and vodka sauce and Romesco sauce and still I had more, so I canned several quarts of tomatoes. Finally I got it down to where there were just a few ripe tomatoes, and now all the semi-ripe ones are ripening. Argh! So many tomatoes …

Maybe I just need to make more vodka sauce! It is such a delightful, creamy tomato sauce. If you can’t decide whether you want a red tomato sauce or a cream sauce on your dish, try this vodka sauce. It’s the absolute perfect cross between the two.

Creamy Good Vodka Sauce

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 45 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: About 1 quart of sauce 1x

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, peeled & chopped
• 3 – 5 garlic cloves peeled & chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper flakes (or 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes)
• 4 medium-large fresh garden tomatoes, grilled, peels & cores removed (with juices) … or 1 28-oz. can whole peeled tomatoes
• 1/3 cup vodka
• 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon salt & several grinds of fresh ground pepper
• A couple drops of liquid smoke (optional, but recommended)
• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves (packed)
• 1/4 cup half & half cream (reduced fat cream)
• 2 oz. Parmesan cheese, cut into small chunks

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Instructions

1. Heat a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the oil, then the onion and garlic. Saute for 4 – 6 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the pepper flakes and saute 1 minute longer.
2. Add the tomatoes and vodka and continue cooking for 5 – 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the tomato paste, balsamic vinegar, salt & pepper. Reduce heat to medium low and cook uncovered for about 10 – 20 minutes longer, stirring frequently, until reduced to about half.
3. Pour the tomato mixture into a blender and add the basil, half & half and cheese and blend until smooth. Toss with pasta or zoodles or spoon over roasted veggies, chicken, pork, fish or seafood … or store in a mason jar in the fridge until you’re ready to use the sauce.

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Notes

For a vegan vodka sauce, leave out the cream and Parmesan and blend in 1/2 cup cashews until smooth.

If you want to pressure can this sauce, leave out the cream and the cheese and ladle the hot sauce into sterilized pint size jars, leaving about 1/2 inch head room. Wipe the rims clean with a damp, clean cloth, then wipe again with a clean towel. Set lids on, then tighten the rims. Pressure cook at 12 lb pressure for 25 minutes, naturally releasing the pressure. When you open the jar, stir in 1 Tablespoon half & half or cream and 1/2 oz. shredded parmesan cheese per pint.

RECIPE SOURCE: http://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/

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Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1/4 cup
• Calories: 121
• Fat: 6 g