With school online, dating life for many has disappeared. But Zoom doesn’t have to be just for class. This week’s date idea accommodates those not ready to meet in person quite yet but still want a real date experience. Want an in person date? No worries, this can also qualify for a cozy night in. 

Vodka sauce Pasta and Wine

This is my favorite pasta meal that is easy to put together, don’t worry it’ll still look like you put a lot of effort into it. I personally love farfalle noodles with this sauce, but rigatoni is also very common with this dish.

Prep time: 15-20 minutes Cook Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients: 

1 medium onion

4 Garlic cloves

4 Oz. parmesan Cheese

2 tsps virgin olive oil

4.5 oz tube double concentrate tomato paste

½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes

2 oz of (Cheap) vodka

1 cup of heavy whipping cream

1 package of farfalle noodles

Basil leaves

Start: 

Fill a large pot with three-quarters full of water and heat over high. Sprinkle some salt into the water and wait for it to boil before putting the pasta in. 

While waiting, cut up the onions and garlic and set another pot on the stove with medium heat. Drizzle Olive oil on the pot then put the chopped onions in before the garlic. After both are in consistently stir until the onions brown around the edges. Afterwards put the entire 4.5 oz container of tomato paste and red paper flakes. Then continue stirring until the onions are completely coated and the paste is deep red.

Add the two ounces of vodka and stir together while reducing the heat to low. After this scoop out ¼ of the pot’s boiling water before adding the whipping cream. This will add a nice,thick texture. Stir in the cream until fully mixed in then add salt, pepper, paprika and italian seasoning — I like to add more spice for some heat but this is not necessary.

Taste test your noodles to make sure they are your preferred softness and take a ½  cup of the pasta water to put into the sauce for additional flavor. After you drain the rest of the pasta, mix it with the sauce followed by adding parmesan cheese and basil leaves to the top for the final look. 

I like to pair the dish with a sauvignon Blanc wine but your favorite barefoot from 7/11 will suffice. After this, get cozy for a dinner a movie. To watch the movie virtual with someone there are a couple ways such as skype, zoom or Houseparty that allow you to watch the movie while also seeing each other on the screen. While I think rom-coms make the best date movies, a preference to different genre won’t kill the date mood and picking one of your own favorite movies can add a level of comfort and great conversation piece  — if you can handle talking during the movie that is.