Pappardelle Pasta with Vodka Sauce

Ingredients

3 tablespoons DeLallo Extra Virgin Olive Oil

4 ounces chopped pancetta

3 tablespoons DeLallo Tomato Paste

1 medium yellow onion, diced

1 large bulb fennel, diced

1 pound ground beef

1/4 cup red wine (sub chicken stock or water) to deglaze the pan

1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

2 teaspoons salt, plus more to taste

1 28 ounce can DeLallo San Marzano Style Crushed Tomatoes

1 25.5 ounce jar DeLallo Pomodoro Fresco Creamy Vodka Sauce

2 packages DeLallo Pappardelle Egg Pasta

Parmesan cheese

1 cup Oregano, Basil, and/ or Marjoram, divided with 1/2 cup reserved to garnish

Directions

In a large pot or dutch oven, add the olive oil and heat over medium high. Add the onion, fennel, tomato paste, and pancetta and cook until softened, about 12 minutes. Allow the tomato paste to caramelize and begin to stick to the bottom of the pan. Season the mix with salt and the black pepper, then add the red wine (or water or stock) and scrape the bottom with a spatula to deglaze. Next, add the ground beef and break apart with a spatula. Cook until the meat is no longer pink, 10 minutes.

Add the crushed tomatoes and vodka Pomodoro Fresco sauce. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 30-35 minutes until slightly thickened and reduced. Taste for additional salt, but season lightly because you’ll also be adding some salted pasta water before serving.

Bring 4 qts of water to a boil. Season heavily with salt and stir to dissolve. When water is at a rolling boil, add the pasta and cook for 8-9 minutes or until al dente—the pasta will continue cooking when you add it to the warm sauce before serving. Just before the pasta has finished cooking, transfer 1/2-3/4 cup of the pasta water to the sauce and stir—allow the sauce to simmer as you finish cooking and draining the pasta. When the pasta is done cooking, immediately drain and transfer to the simmering pot of sauce. Stir to coat the noodles and allow the sauce to thicken, 2 minutes. Add 1/2 c of the fresh herbs into the pot (reserving the rest to garnish).

Serve the pasta warm with a generous amount of parmesan and fresh herbs.