Hubbers had a birthday this week and I really wanted to make one of his most favorite meals: Penne alla Vodka. We didn't have vodka, but we had brandy. I researched tons, literally, tons, of Penne alla something recipes and I couldn't find any using brandy. I was getting a little scared. I figured I would go with it anyway, and fortunately, it turned out fantastic. Admittedly, when I poured the half cup of brandy into the sauce and immediately took a taste, that horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach erupted when that nail polish - like flavor hit my taste buds. Oh crap! I just ruined dinner. I forgot that it takes a while for the alcohol to cook off and after about fifteen to twenty minutes, that strong brandy taste was absorbed by the tomatoes and the seasonings. Now, I am planning to experiment with some more booze for this penne dish!
I used fresh tomatoes, or what I like to refer to as "real tomatoes," for this recipe, but the canned tomatoes would work just as well especially since they contain a lot of juice. It would also be interesting to see how the fire roasted canned tomatoes would turn out for this dish and it would save on prep time too. Another quick note about this dish is that even though I used sausage, ground beef would work great as another option.
Adapted from Saveur
Ingredients:
1 package or roll of mild Jimmy Dean sausage
3-4 large tomatoes, chopped, or one large can of diced tomatoes
1 (6 oz) can of tomato paste
1 c chicken stock
1 /2 c heavy cream
1 /2 c brandy
1 /4 c Parmesan cheese, shredded
1 /4 c diced onion
4 garlic cloves, diced
1 /8 tsp red chili flakes or red pepper
1 tsp oregano
half of a package of penne
Directions:
In a large skillet, cook sausage on medium high heat until browned and no longer pink.
Add the onion and garlic to the skillet with the cooked sausage and cook for a couple of minutes until the onion is tender.
Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, red pepper, oregano and the chicken stock and cook on medium high heat for about 4-5 minutes to let the tomatoes and juice reduce.
While the tomatoes reduce, cook the penne according to package directions.
Lower skillet heat to medium low, and add the brandy and simmer for a couple of minutes to get the alcohol to reduce a little.
Add the heavy cream and Parmesan and let simmer for about a minute.
Once the penne has cooked, spoon tomato and sausage mixture over the pasta, or you may want to stir the penne into the tomato sausage mixture. It may be easier to do this if you are cooking it in a dutch oven as this tomato mixture is very heavy and thick.
I used fresh tomatoes, or what I like to refer to as "real tomatoes," for this recipe, but the canned tomatoes would work just as well especially since they contain a lot of juice. It would also be interesting to see how the fire roasted canned tomatoes would turn out for this dish and it would save on prep time too. Another quick note about this dish is that even though I used sausage, ground beef would work great as another option.
Adapted from Saveur
Ingredients:
1 package or roll of mild Jimmy Dean sausage
3-4 large tomatoes, chopped, or one large can of diced tomatoes
1 (6 oz) can of tomato paste
1 c chicken stock
1 /2 c heavy cream
1 /2 c brandy
1 /4 c Parmesan cheese, shredded
1 /4 c diced onion
4 garlic cloves, diced
1 /8 tsp red chili flakes or red pepper
1 tsp oregano
half of a package of penne
Directions:
In a large skillet, cook sausage on medium high heat until browned and no longer pink.
Add the onion and garlic to the skillet with the cooked sausage and cook for a couple of minutes until the onion is tender.
Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, red pepper, oregano and the chicken stock and cook on medium high heat for about 4-5 minutes to let the tomatoes and juice reduce.
While the tomatoes reduce, cook the penne according to package directions.
Lower skillet heat to medium low, and add the brandy and simmer for a couple of minutes to get the alcohol to reduce a little.
Add the heavy cream and Parmesan and let simmer for about a minute.
Once the penne has cooked, spoon tomato and sausage mixture over the pasta, or you may want to stir the penne into the tomato sausage mixture. It may be easier to do this if you are cooking it in a dutch oven as this tomato mixture is very heavy and thick.
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