K Weigh Penne alla Vodka

While there are a number of perks that come with writing a blog, one of my absolute favorites is having a platform to share my excitement about food with others who feel the same. A good example is this gorgeous bowl of Penne alla Vodka I made for dinner last week: 

Penne alla Vodka - fork

For those of you unfamiliar with this iconic dish, penne alla vodka is a pasta dish made from crushed tomatoes, vodka, heavy cream, butter & parmesan- not exactly your idea of a healthy dish.  I call my version the K Weigh Penne alla Vodka. 

 Penne alla Vodka - ingredients

Aside from being made by yours truly, my take on this dish truly embodies what K Weigh is all about i.e. finding the balance between foods that nourish your body & foods that feed your soul to ensure optimal & long-lasting results.  While I’m all about indulging in the real deal every so often, some days I prefer to tweak a recipe to lighten it up and/or add some nutritional pizzazz.  For extra volume, nutrients & somewhat of a meaty texture, I added in eggplant & mushrooms. Although the veggies add fibre in their own right, feel free to add some more by using a wholemeal variety of pasta.  My recipe skips the vodka completely, but I promise you won’t even miss it – the dish bursts with more than enough flavor. Rather than heavy cream, butter & parmesan, this K Weigh Penne alla Vodka relies on cream cheese (i.e. my current addiction) to add richness and that delicious cheesy flavour we all love so much. 

Penne alla Vodka- Skillet

Guys I’m telling you– this is the kind of comfort food you can actually feel smug about eating.  Just promise me you will use the full-fat variety of cream cheese.  If you’re concerned about the extra calories, consider this:

1 tablespoon of full-fat Philadelphia cream cheese contains 49 calories, 5g fat, 0.5g carb & 1g protein whereas 1 tablespoon of reduced-fat Philadelphia cream cheese contains 35 calories, 3g fat, 1g carb & 1g protein

If you ask me, those extra 14 calories are negligible when it comes to creaminess & taste!

And if the dish isn’t beautiful enough as it is, take comfort in the fact that it only takes 20 minutes to whip up…prep time included:

[yumprint-recipe id=’25’]What’s your favourite pasta dish?

12 thoughts on “K Weigh Penne alla Vodka”

  1. Sounds delicious! Great idea to use cream cheese to add creaminess to the dish. I don’t really like vodka anyways, so it sounds better to me without it! 😉

    My favourite pasta dish is some kind of ravioli, especially butternut squash ravioli!

    1. Pshhhh no pasta in ages- what kinda European are you ;)?? Fortunately your choice of pasta favourites redeem you- nothing like a Bolognese done right!

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