I need help. I have made tons of different vodka sauces and they are good, but nothing like I get in the restaurants. I live in the Long Island/NYC area and there are so many good italian restaurants here. Their vodka sauce is always a dark orange color and tastes so much better than the pink ones that I make. I have tried so many different ways, but mixing tomato and heavy cream will always make pink! Some of my favorite restaurants in the area are Vincent’s (Westbury, NY), Ciao Baby (Massapequa, NY), La Bella Palermo ( West Babylon, NY), La Parma (Huntington, NY)…They all have the kind of vodka sauce I am looking for. If anyone has ever had these or knows what I am talking about and can recreate these please let me know!
Thanks
Vodka Cream Pasta from Rachael Ray.
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, once around the pan in a slow stream
1 tablespoon butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 shallots, minced
1 cup vodka
1 cup chicken stock
1 can crushed tomatoes (32 ounces)
Coarse salt and pepper
16 ounces pasta, such as penne rigate
1/2 cup heavy cream
20 leaves fresh basil, shredded or torn
Serve with:
Crusty bread, for passing
Heat a large skillet over moderate heat. Add oil, butter, garlic and shallots. Gently sauté shallots for 3 to 5 minutes to develop their sweetness. Add vodka to the pan (3 turns around the pan in a steady stream will equal about 1 cup). Reduce vodka by half, this will take 2 or 3 minutes. Add chicken stock, tomatoes. Bring sauce to a bubble and reduce heat to simmer. Season with salt and pepper.
While sauce simmers, cook pasta in salted boiling water until cooked to al dente (with a bite to it). While pasta cooks, prepare your salad or other side dishes.
Stir cream into sauce. When sauce returns to a bubble, remove it from heat. Drain pasta. Toss hot pasta with sauce and basil leaves. Pass pasta with crusty bread.