Penna alla vodka

Some pasta alla vodka I made the other day with de Cecco dried penne. I lacked pancetta or guanciale to start my sauce, which I usually start by frying and then removing them, and taking out most of the leftover fat but leaving enough to flavor the sauce. I used bacon instead, which imo is actually my second favorite after guanciale.

Started with olive oil into the pan with the reserved bacon fat, and then added small diced white onions. After the onions are translucent, I added 2 cloves of crushed garlic and cooked for a minute. Then I added about 2/3rds of a small can of tomato paste, which I like to cook very heavily, for about 5 minutes, until the moisture is reduced and it starts to brown on the pan.

After the base is done, I add a shot of vodka and heavy cream by eye, and cook until I can't smell the alcohol. Once that's done and it starts to get thick, I added a big bowl of micrograted Costco parmesan and reserved pasta water to eye (usually no less than half a cup), along with a little salt and a lot of pepper.

Since I was cooking for six, I had a large pan, and then threw the pasta which had finished a few minutes earlier so I'd have the water into a large pan with the sauce, and then added more pasta water, until it looked like it did above. Finished with more micrograted parm, and some people had extra pepper.