This Italian Pink Sauce combines red tomato sauce with heavy cream to create the most luscious rose pasta sauce! Toss it with your favorite pasta for the perfect 20-minute dinner.
If you've tried my pasta recipes, you know I love this carb-rich comfort food. It's quick, easy, and satisfies everyone. Just like my Simple Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta and Classic Lasagna with Béchamel Recipe, this Italian Pink Sauce is made with simple ingredients and guaranteed to become a new family favorite.
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Why You'll Love this Recipe
- Homemade pasta sauce in 20 minutes! Store-bought pasta and pizza sauces are very convenient when making things like Air Fryer Pizza Rolls and my easy No-Boil Pasta Bake, but making a homemade version is extra satisfying. If you haven't already, trying my Authentic Italian Pasta Sauce Recipe is a must! It is my Nonna's recipe and a personal favorite.
- Meal prep friendly. Pink sauce pasta makes fantastic leftovers. Make a batch on Sunday and enjoy creamy pink sauce for lunch all week long. Try adding my easy Easy Italian Sausage and Vegetable Sheet Pan Dinner into the dinner rotation, too.
- Pairs well with protein and veggies. Make this creamy tomato sauce pasta your own by adding your favorite protein and/or vegetables. Pink sauce goes particularly well with lobster ravioli, chicken, Italian sausage, roasted vegetables, or a simple side salad.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Tomato sauce and tomato paste - Instead of jarred marinara sauce, we combine tomato sauce and tomato paste to make our own easy, homemade Italian pasta sauce. Adding tomato paste is essential to allowing the pink sauce to develop a deep, rich flavor.
- Heavy cream - This is what makes this a pink sauce! Adding heavy cream to the homemade tomato sauce will turn it into a beautiful blush color.
- Onion and garlic - Cooking with fresh onion and garlic is the easiest way to make your homemade tomato sauce taste restaurant worthy.
See the recipe card below for the remaining ingredients and quantities.
Variations
- Out of heavy cream? Try replacing the heavy cream with ¾ cup full-fat coconut milk or ½ cup half and half mixed with ¼ cup unsalted butter. Avoid using lighter milks or plant-based milk. If you're interested in more dairy-free pasta, you'll like my Dairy-Free Turkey Bolognese.
- Out of tomato sauce? Try tomato puree or mix tomato paste with water to create a tomato sauce. Tomato puree will be a bit thicker and create a more deep tomato-flavored Italian pink sauce but it will work in a pinch. Check out these tomato sauce substitutes.
- No olive oil? Try another oil like avocado oil, vegetable oil, or refined coconut oil. Avoid oils with pronounced flavors like sesame oil or unrefined coconut oil. Save those oils for recipes like Sweet Chili Chicken Stir Fry and Sweet Potato Muffins with Crumb Topping.
- Want to add a bit of a kick? Stir in ¼-1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes for heat.
Instructions
- Sauté the onion and garlic. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the diced onion and sauté for 4-5 minutes, until softened. Add the minced garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Simmer the tomato sauce. Lower the heat to medium heat, then stir in the tomato paste, tomato sauce, salt, and pepper. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Pour in the cream. Stir to combine and cook the blush pink sauce for another 2 minutes.
- Serve. Turn off the heat and serve the Italian pink sauce with your favorite kind of pasta, parmesan cheese, and chopped fresh basil.
Recipe FAQs
This tomato cream sauce gets the name pink sauce, or rosa, due to its pink color. To make pink sauce, you simply mix tomato sauce with heavy cream to turn the sauce a pink, "rosa" color.
No, the main difference between pink sauce and vodka sauce is the inclusion of vodka. Italian pink sauce does not have a vodka base.
Yes, if you simmer pasta sauce for too long, particularly at high temperatures, it can turn bitter. For best results, avoid using high heat to make your pink sauce.
Yes! This creamy rose sauce freezes very well. Transfer leftover, room-temperature Italian pink sauce to a freezer-safe jar or zip-top bag and seal tightly. Freeze for up to 3 months for optimal freshness.
Top Tips
- Keep the heat low! This will help avoid splatter and avoid overcooking the sauce.
- Season to taste. If you use tomato sauce with added salt, you may need to adjust the amount of salt called for. Remember you can always add more, you can't take away.
More Pasta Recipes You'll Love
🍳Recipe
Italian Pink Sauce
Equipment
- Cutting board
- Garlic press
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ½ yellow onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce, no salt added
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¾ cup heavy cream or full-fat coconut milk
- Parmesan for serving
- Basil for serving
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the onion and sauté for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Turn the heat to medium, add in the tomato paste, tomato sauce, salt and pepper and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Pour in the cream and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
- Turn off the heat and serve with your favorite pasta.
- Top with Parmesan cheese and chopped basil.
Notes
- Keep the heat low! This will help avoid splatter and avoid overcooking the sauce.
- Season to taste. If you use tomato sauce with added salt, you may need to adjust the amount of salt called for. Remember you can always add more, you can't take away.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
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