Some people say that they don't have time to feed their family a home cooked meal every night of the week. I believe that with good planning you can keep staples in the house for those nights that you are short on time and want to prepare a meal in less than 30 minutes. You should always have boxes of pasta in the pantry such as
Barilla. It is so versatile and the recipes you can make with pasta are endless. Keep them in every size and shape and add them to soups, stews, casseroles, stir-fry. For ideas explore
Barilla website for recipes and menus. Follow them on
Facebook and try their Barilla Spaghetti Ranchero recipe that they featured on Facebook.
I received boxes of Barilla pasta to taste and review. This Penne a la Vodka was the perfect recipe to try Barilla pasta. What I like about these pasta is that the cooking time on the package is right on. If the package say that the pasta is ready in 8 minutes, it really is ready in 8 minutes to my taste. Another bonus is that the pasta keeps it's shape, it's very important, you don't want to end up with pasta that lose their shape during cooking. The Penne a la Vodka is a great recipe for a quick week night. My family enjoyed this recipe and it had become a repeater in the house.
Penne alla Vodka
1 tbsp olive
oil
3 garlic
cloves, minced
1/4 tsp red
pepper flakes
1(28-ounce)
can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup oil-packed
sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed and chopped fine
1/2 cup vodka
3/4 cup heavy
cream
Salt and pepper
454g penne pasta
1/3 cup minced
fresh basil
Prepare pasta
according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
In a skillet heat
oil and add garlic and pepper flakes, cook 30 seconds.
Add crushed tomatoes
and sun-dried tomatoes and cook 5 minutes.
Take the skillet off
heat. Add vodka and bring sauce to boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for
about 12 to 15 minutes
Take the skillet off
heat add cream. Stir well. Add salt and pepper to taste.
In a big bowl mix
pasta and sauce together. Add basil.
Serve with cheese.
