Shell Pasta with Vodka Sauce

Serves 5
Ingredients
Salt
1 brown onion
4 garlic cloves, or as many as you want
1/2 cup of parmesan cheese
Olive oil
45g tomato paste
2 tsp of chilli flakes
2 shots or 60mL vodka
3/4 cup of cream
500g shell pasta
Handful of basil to serve
Handful of cherry tomatoes, halved, to serve.

Method
1. Using a medium pot, fill about 3/4 of the way with water, add two sprinkles of salt, then bring to a boil. Once boiled add the pasta.
2. Whilst you wait for the water to boil, peel and mince the garlic and dice the onion.
3. Heat a deep pan over medium heat. Drizzle with olive oil about 2-3 tbsp. Add the onion and garlic, cook until onion is translucent/starts to caramelise.
4. Add the tomato paste allowing it to cook for 5 minutes or until the paste turns dark red. Continue to stir to avoid it burning.
6. Once darkened, add the vodka and reduce the heat.
7. Next in a large glass jar or measuring cup scoop about 1/4-1/2 of a cup of the pasta water and mix it with the cream. This is to heat the cream gently and prevent is separating if you were to add it to the pan directly.
8. Add the cream mixture and chilli flakes to the pan and continue to stir until sauce is smooth. Then take off the heat.
9. From the pasta, remove another cup of pasta water to use to thin the sauce later if required.
10. Drain the pasta and the mix it into the sauce.
11. If the sauce is too thick, add a small amount of pasta water to the pasta mixture.
12. Serve about 1 cup of pasta to each plate. Cut up about 4 cherry tomatoes, tear a few basil leaves and add a generous sprinkle of parmesan cheese.