Penne Alla Vodka with Roasted Broccoli Rabe

Cashew Cream

Cashew Cream Ingredients:

• 1 cup raw cashews
• 1 1/2 cups water, plus more for boiling cashews
• 1/2 tsp salt

Cashew Cream Instructions:

1. (If you have a super high-speed blender like a Vitamix, you can skip this step) Place raw cashews in a medium saucepan and cover with enough water to fully submerge the cashews. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil for about 5 minutes, then turn off the heat and let cashews sit for another 10 minutes. This allows the cashews to soften and makes for easy blending. Alternatively, for the planners out there, you can soak the cashews in water overnight in the fridge. Drain cashews.
2. Place cashews, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1 1/2 cups water in a blender and blend until completely smooth, about 3-5 minutes depending on the blender. The cream should be liquid enough to drip off a spoon. if it is too thick, simply add more water. Set cream aside.

Penne alla Vodka

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided, plus more for optional drizzling
• (optional) 1 teaspoon red chili flakes
• 1/2 cup yellow onion, diced (from 1 small onion or 1/2 large onion)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 tsp salt, divided
• 1/2 tsp pepper, divided
• 1 tsp sugar or agave syrup
• 1/3 cup vodka (we use Titos)
• 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes (We like this San Marzano brand)
• 1 cup Cashew Cream or 1 cup coconut milk
• 12–16 oz. penne pasta (we like this whole wheat De Cecco penne or this Banza penne)
• 1 bunch broccoli rabe, washed and stems trimmed (ie: cut about 1 inch off stem)
• Basil for garnish
• Parmesan for topping