Chicken Sausage Rigatoni in a Spicy Vodka Sauce

One of my favorite pasta dishes is Pasta alla Vodka, I absolutely love it. So when I came across a pasta recipe with vodka AND sausage last week I knew it would be an instant must try. However, since I was healing (ever so slowly) from wisdom teeth extraction I decided to wait a few more days to give this recipe a whirl. I went grocery shopping for all the ingredients today and made this dish for dinner...and Ohhhhhhh Myyyyyy Gooosh this is GoOoOoOoOoD!!! It's definitely a calorie bomb but it's most definitely worth it because it is absolutely heavenly. Plus, the recipe is also from one of my favorite Food Network chefs, Sunny Anderson. This recipe does make a lot even with four people eating it as a meal. As for the leftovers? It's my lunch tomorrow at work :o)

Chicken Sausage Rigatoni in a Spicy Vodka Sauce 

(Source: Sunny Anderson)

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 pound chicken sausage, casings removed*

1/2 cup roughly chopped onion

1 jalapeno, chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/2 cup roughly chopped green pepper

1 teaspoon hot paprika

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes with basil**

1/3 cup vodka

1 cup heavy cream

1 pound rigatoni

1 cup grated Asiago cheese

3 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley leaves

Bring a large pot of water to boil for the pasta. In a large saute pan over medium heat melt butter with oil. Add chicken sausage and brown, 3 to 4 minutes, breaking up large chunks with a wooden spoon. Add onions, jalapenos and garlic and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Add green pepper, paprika, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper, to taste, and cook 3 minutes more. Generously salt the pasta water and add the rigatoni. Cook until al dente, about 12 minutes. Meanwhile, add tomatoes to the sauce and bring to a simmer, for about 10 minutes. Add vodka and cream and cook a few minutes more. Toss in cheese and chopped parsley. To serve, drain the pasta well and add to the sauce. Mix until pasta is nicely coated. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

*Regular Italian Sausage can be used in place of the Chicken sausage

**I used two (14 oz) cans of diced tomatoes with basil