Hiya Gorgeous!
Today I’m going to show you how to make vegan penne alla vodka (aka Dirty Penne): a rich, creamy gluten-free vegan pasta recipe with a splash of vodka!
It’s super easy to make, and you can whip it up in a jiffy. I love keeping the ingredients on hand for when I don’t have a lot of time (or energy) to play in the kitchen. If you prefer to omit the vodka, that’s fine. The small amount of alcohol helps bring out the flavors. It also adds a bitter bite that goes well with the salty sweetness of the dish.
As always, I use recipes as guidelines–not hard-and-fast rules. So feel free to tinker, tweak and tickle ‘til your taste buds let out a genuine “Mmmm.”
I hope you enjoy! And remember to serve the dish with a big ole salad. If you need some new inspiration, we have lots of delicious recipes (and dressings) in Crazy Sexy Kitchen.
Vegan Penne alla Vodka
Ingredients
- Brown rice pasta (I like Tinkyada brand)
- 1 jar of your favorite pasta sauce (I love Dave’s Gourmet & Crazy Sexy Kitchen’s Nana’s Marinara)
- 2-3 cloves minced garlic
- 1 cup frozen organic peas
- 2 heaping tablespoons capers
- ¼ – ½ cup raw, unsalted cashews
- ½-1 cup water (to blend cashews)
- Drizzle of olive oil (optional)
- Splash of vodka (2-4 cap fulls or an ⅛ of a cup)
- Salt & pepper to taste
Directions
1. Bring water to a boil and add a dash of salt to keep the pasta from sticking. Once the water is bubbling, add the pasta. Follow the directions on the package; it should take about 12 minutes or so.
2. To make the sauce, use your favorite jarred marinara as the base. Pour into a saucepan and add the garlic, peas, capers, plus a drizzle of olive oil and splash of vodka.
3. In a high-speed blender, blend the cashews and water until they are creamy. Add more or less water to suit your desires. Pour the cashew cream into the sauce and stir.
4. Cook on medium to low heat for about 15 minutes. Bathe the sauce all over the pasta and serve with a bright and tasty salad.
Now I’d love to hear from you, what’s your go-to meal choice when you don’t have much time in the kitchen?
I’m sure we’d all love to know. Our readers love the comments as much as the blog content. Bon appetit!
Peace & dirty pasta,
This looks wonderful — I could almost taste it!! One little hint on opening the jar – turn it upside down and smack the bottom of it hard with your hand flat a couple times — it does something to the air in the jar and makes it much easier to open. If I don’t do that, I have to chase down my husband!! Thanks Kris!
I think I can’t wait to try it.
Thanks, Kris!
I love the recipe above, but my daughter is allergic to nuts and seeds, what would you replace the cashews with????
Thanks
a hug fan
Risa
Love this! Can’t wait to try it.
I love this recipe, it is now a staple in our household!
Thank you Kris for sharing and I cannot wait from Crazy sexy kitchen to arrive in Europe…
This looks delicious, and is on my “to make” list! ( Just recently bought CSDiet and CSKitchen!! YAY ). Also, just wondering what to substitute the cashew cream with for someone with nut allergies?
Thanks!
Looks delish! What are the crunchy greens on the side? Those look really delicious!
Really good pasta dish. I will make that again! I almost licked the sauce off the plate it was so good.
I wish I had a better blender because there were a couple of pieces of cashes left in the sauce. Although, I didn’t mind it.
This recipe sounds absolutely delicious, can’t wait to try it! When I’m short on time I love to make veggie fajitas from Claire’s Corner Copia cookbook. Claire’s has been making amazing vegetarian and vegan meals at its downtown New Haven restaurant for years. I made the fajitas last week and the recipe can be found on my blog. They’re easy and high on flavor! Love your book and your blog. Keep up the great work!!
It looks delicious, I am going to try it. Thank you for sharing. I bought your book, the one you wrote with Chad and am awaiting the deliciousness!
Kris!!! This recipe was amazing, I just finished making it for my dinner tonight and I already can’t wait until dinner tomorrow night (helllooooo leftovers). I took a bunch of nice photos of the dish and posted them on my blog if you want to see what it turned out like. You’re the best! xoxo
AHMAZING!!!! I have wanted to make this for a while and finally executed last night. I switched it up a little bit…added tofu, which I cooked along with the onions and garlic in olive oil before adding the sauce, and used spinach in lieu of peas. It was PHENOMENAL. My totally carnivorous inlaws were absolutely raving about it along with my husband. Its unreal how CREAMY it seems — the cashew cream is insane. Every single recipe I have made from your cookbook, and now this one, has been wonderful. I’ve been veg for over 15 years but I finally feel like I have hit my stride in the cooking realm…feeling pretty gourmet over here. THANK YOU!!!
This recipe might have changed my life!! YUM
Holy smokes, this pasta was too good for words. I made a Greek salad to accompany it and dinner was out of this world!
A favorite go-to dish for me is a Socca omelette stuffed full with mushrooms, onion, frozen shredded potatoes, kalamata olives and hot sauce over the top. Yum!
I went to the store yesterday and picked up some vodka sauce. However, I quickly put it back down after reading the nutrition table and ingredients! It’s been such a long time since i’ve had it I forgot how horrible it is for you. I randomly came across this recipe less than 24hrs later (a sign from God i’m sure:). Thanks for sharing! I can’t wait to try this.
Ok, I’m not even kidding, I had to give the leftovers away to my ex because I was literally inhaling it for dinner. Maybe next time I will use a fork. Haha My kids loved it too.. , !
This was the best. Ms. Carr you are fabulous! X
Hi Kris,
Love your stuff — first heard about you in the beautiful film you made a number of years ago. Quick question: I had the impression that you found that a diet of almost 100% raw foods was the “way to go” for rebuilding and sustaining good health. And today I see a recipe for penne vodka (yum sounds delish). Have I misread your position of cooking? Help, I am confused. (By the way, I love to cook and would be delighted if getting healthy involved warm soups, pasta, tex-mex and tons of baked Italian specialties!). Could you please clarify? Thanks so much for all you do — I recovered from cancer 40 years ago, and count each day as a blessing. All best always, Elizabeth Hurwitz
I finally made it and it’s delicious.
You make me laugh out loud funny girl! I shall try this weekend and make nummie noises too!
I just finished making the sauce and it is exactly what I have been missing, I love it!
I know I will be making this frequently. Thank you