This post may include affiliate links; for details, see our disclosure policy.
Nothing says “special dinner” more than vodka sauce pasta! The creamy sauce is simmered with garlic and basil, served over rigatoni with lots of Parmesan.
This post was created in partnership with DeLallo. All opinions are our own.
Twinkle lights, crisp rose and vodka sauce pasta. Excuse us while we sigh in nostalgia! This long-simmered sauce will shoot you to Italian grandmother status in no time. We created this recipe in honor of our favorite Italian brand, Delallo, who just launched their new line of pasta. To celebrate, we threw a sweet Italian-themed “pasta party” and invited some of our favorite women entrepreneurs working in food in our city. It was the most special evening! We want to show you how to recreate this simple Italian pasta party to enjoy good food and good people. Ready?
Want a quicker spin? Try Tomato Cream Sauce, made in half the time!
An Italian dinner party menu
This Italian dinner party menu is all about simplicity! While the vodka sauce pasta takes about 1 hour to simmer, it’s mostly hands off! You can put it on the stove and let it simmer while you make the rest of the recipes and preparations. It’s truly all about the goodness of simple, high quality ingredients. We used a bunch of Delallo products to put together the menu: we love them because they are truly best in class. Trust us, we’re obsessed with Italian recipes and this Italian family business has it nailed.
Here’s our simple Italian dinner party menu:
- Vodka Sauce Pasta (recipe below; we used Delallo Rigatoni and Crushed Tomatoes)
- Favorite Chopped Salad
- Cheese plate from the Mediterranean Sunset Gift Collection*
- Fruit plate with sliced green apple and grapes
- Rose wine
*We created this custom box for Delallo based on our latest Italy trip! You could also buy these ingredients separately: we used the Olive Bruschetta, Artichoke Bruschetta, Grilled Artichokes (our favorite!), Castelvetrano Olives, Parmesan Cheese Wedge, Sliced Prosciutto, and Pistachios.
Tips on how to make vodka sauce pasta
Want the secret to Italian grandmother style vodka sauce pasta? Simmer the sauce. For 1 hour! You won’t see a lot of 1 hour simmers here on A Couple Cooks. Because our core passion is fast and easy dinner recipes. But guess what? Even more than fast and easy, we’re obsessed with flavor. This vodka sauce pasta is so seriously full of flavor, it’s worth every second of that simmer. And what says “you’re special” more than a 1 hour simmered pasta?
Here’s another secret. Because this pasta sauce is mostly hands-off, it’s actually an easy recipe. Here are some tips on how to make vodka sauce pasta:
- The only thing you’ll need to cut is garlic! If you need to brush up on your knife skills, here’s How to Mince Garlic.
- Use quality vodka: and don’t worry! It’s safe for kids. You’ll want to use the good stuff here! Don’t worry, the alcohol cooks away, leaving a tangy back-end flavor.
- Simmer with a halved onion. To get onion flavor without onion in the sauce, you’ll simply simmer the sauce with a halved onion: then remove it after the simmer.
- Fresh basil is a must. Trust us. The Italians know best!
- Blend, then melt in the Parmesan cheese (not cream). Some vodka sauces use heavy cream, but the Parmesan carries the show here.
Pasta party prep tips
Now, dinner parties aren’t just about recipes: they’re about setting a beautiful table too! Luckily I had Alex to help me and he thought of some really fun decoration ideas. Here’s what we did to make a lovely setting for our vodka sauce pasta with friends:
- Use tomato cans as vases! The most fun idea for reuse: save your tomato cans and use them as vases! Here we filled them with flowers from our yard.
- Add a simple white table runner and candles. Besides this, our only decoration was a simple white table runner down the center of our table, and some white candles as a centerpiece.
- Ball jar drinking glasses make a nice touch. These blue Ball jars are our everyday glasses, but the color makes a nice pop for a tablescape.
- Twinkle lights are a must. All we know is that all food tastes better under twinkle lights! Unless it’s not outside dining weather, in which case you can make it up with more candles.
Here’s how we phased out our party prep. Alex and I did all the table decor first, then made the vodka sauce. We let that simmer while we prepared the salad and got together the cheese plate and appetizers. The pasta portion of the vodka sauce pasta I boiled up right after guests arrived: that way the pasta would be perfectly hot and al dente.
Our party guests
For our Italian dinner party, we wanted to enjoy vodka sauce pasta and give a little thank you to some women entrepreneurs working in food in our city. These women are part of the Indy Women in Food organization that works to connect women business owners in Indianapolis to empower them and encourage collaboration. These dear friends of ours are working hard to make our city a better, more equitable place. Make sure follow along with these incredible women and their stories:
- Tanorria Askew, personal chef and MasterChef finalist
- Candace Boyd Wylie, food blogger and spice brand owner
- Ashley Brooks, culinary consultant and founder of Garfield Park Farmer’s Market
- Lauren McDuffie, cookbook author & food blogger
Looking for pasta recipes?
Want a few other options that work great for pasta parties? Try these great pasta recipes:
- Simple White Sauce Pasta has an amazing basic cream sauce that everyone will love!
- This Cheese Tortellini in Creamy Marinara is the best quick dinner recipe
- Our friend Erin’s Chicken Pesto Pasta is packed with flavor
- This Best Gouda Mac and Cheese makes a huge pan
- Mushroom Pasta with Goat Cheese is a total fan favorite
- This Creamy Butternut Squash Pasta is almost like mac and cheese! Sneak squash into this silky smooth sauce.
This vodka sauce pasta recipe is…
Vegetarian. For gluten-free, use gluten-free pasta.
Print
Rigatoni Pasta with Vodka Sauce
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 6 to 8 1x
Description
Nothing says “special dinner” more than vodka sauce pasta! The creamy sauce is simmered with garlic and basil, served over rigatoni with lots of Parmesan.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Delallo rigatoni pasta (or short pasta or your choice)
- 3 garlic cloves
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes (or best quality crushed tomatoes)
- ⅓ cup high-quality vodka
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 large basil leaves, plus more for garnish
- 1 medium yellow onion, peeled and cut in half
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
Instructions
- Mince the garlic.
- Melt the butter in large saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, vodka, oregano, red pepper flakes, and kosher salt. Stir to combine. Add the basil and halved onion and simmer for 1 hour with the lid tilted, stirring occasionally.
- After the simmering time, remove the onion. Transfer the sauce to a blender, or use an immersion blender to blend the sauce. Stir in the Parmesan cheese until it melts.
- Meanwhile, boil heavily salted water in a large pot. Cook the pasta to al dente (see the section above). When the pasta is done, drain it and return it to the pot. Combine it with the vodka sauce. Serve sprinkled with grated Parmesan cheese and torn fresh basil leaves.
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: Vodka Sauce, Vodka Sauce Pasta, Pasta Recipe, Vegetarian Pasta,
More pasta recipes!
Love pasta? Here are some of our favorite pasta dinner ideas to serve at parties:
- Roasted Vegetable Pasta
- Top 10 Homemade Pasta Sauces
- Tomato Basil Pasta
- Pesto Mac and Cheese
- Spring Roll Noodle Bowl
- Creamy Goat Cheese Pasta
- Pesto Pasta with Tomatoes
- Instant Pot Spaghetti
- Italian Vegan Pasta Salad
- Creamy Pasta Marinara
- Easy Pasta Puttanesca Recipe
- Vegan Spaghetti and Meatballs
- Romesco Sauce Gnocchi
- Vegetarian Tortellini Soup
- Pumpkin Stuffed Shells
- Vegan Spaghetti with Marinara Sauce
Last updated: May 2020
BE RIGHT OVER. This looks amazing!!
Very delicious!!
Sounds great, but if it has parmesan in it, it isn’t vegetarian. Parmesan contains animal rennet.
True if you are a strict vegetarian! If you are worried about animal rennet, there are several brands of Parmesan cheese on the market labeled “Vegetarian” that contain no animal rennet.
Hi, thanks for the recipe!
Just wondering are the 6 basil leaves suppose to simmer with the sauce or are they just for garnish?
Thanks.
Typo: thank you! It goes in with the onion — we’ve updated the recipe accordingly.
There is no heavy whipping cream to be added? I feel like there was last time I made it but I lost the recipe, I believe this is it though
No, this one just has Parmesan in it! But are you thinking of this Tomato Cream Sauce by chance? It has cream in it: https://www.acouplecooks.com/tomato-cream-sauce/
If I prepare the vodka sauce a day in advance, is it best to add the parmesan and then reheat or reheat then add the Parmesan? This sauce recipe is amazing!!
I would add Parmesan and reheat — but you can do it either way! Thank you so much!