Parma Rosa Sauce

This easy Parma Rosa Sauce is pink from a mixture of classic marinara and heavy cream, a luscious, delicious combination loaded with Parmesan. It’s a heavenly combination served over penne or any other pasta you love.

If you’ve ever heard of “pink sauce pasta,” I’d love to show you how easy this delicious pasta sauce is to make. You start with my simple homemade tomato sauce made with a handful of pantry staples. Then stir in heavy cream and copious amounts of Parmesan cheese.

It’s sort of like combining marinara sauce with Alfredo sauce to make a tomato cream sauce, and it’s just as good as that all sounds! It’s simple meals like these that make dining out hard to justify because you can easily create irresistible Italian flavor right at home, minus the artificial flavors and ingredients.

Recipe ingredients

At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.

Ingredient notes

• Garlic: Substitute ½ teaspoon garlic powder for the fresh, and add in step 2.
• Sugar: This is an optional sauce ingredient; I prefer just 1 teaspoon to balance out the acidity in the canned tomatoes. Sweeten to taste or feel free to omit.
• Heavy cream: For the richest results, choose heavy cream. Light cream or half and half also work, but will give you a slightly less decadent texture due to the lower fat content.
• Parmesan cheese: Freshly grated Parmesan melts better than the grated Parmesan from the shaker, but the green can kind also works well in this creamy pasta sauce.

Step-by-step instructions

1. In a large pot, bring 4 quarts water and 1 tablespoon salt to boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, with a firm bite, about 9 minutes. Drain well.

2. Meanwhile, in a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat, heat extra virgin olive oil until shimmering. Stir in garlic, basil, and oregano until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

3. Pour in crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, sugar (if using), ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered until flavors have blended, about 10 minutes.

4. Stir in heavy cream and parmesan until smooth.

5. Simmer until sauce thickens, about 1 to 2 minutes longer. Remove from heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I like ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper).

6. Serve in a bowl with pasta.

Recipe tips and variations

• Yield: This recipe makes about 5 cups (1 quart) sauce. It’s enough for at least 2 pounds of pasta.
• Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
• Make ahead: The sauce can be made, cooled, covered, and refrigerated up to 3 days in advance.
• Freezer: Cool the finished sauce, then pack into freezer-safe containers (I like to use glass Mason jars; leave a half-inch of head space for expansion), and freeze for up to 3 months.
• Customize your sauce: Add more veggies to your marinara like onion, finely minced carrots, or handfuls of spinach.
• Knorr Parma Rosa Sauce Mix: A store-bought version of the Parma Rosa pasta sauce mix is available here on Amazon.
• Shortcut Parma Rosa Sauce: In a medium saucepan, combine 1 ½ cups marinara sauce or traditional spaghetti sauce with 1 ½ cups alfredo sauce. Heat over medium heat until simmering, stirring occasionally (do not boil). Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve over cooked pasta, garnishing with grated Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley, if desired.
• Dial the cream up or down: For a thinner sauce, substitute ½ cup milk for the heavy cream. For a thicker sauce, add cream cheese.
• For serving: This creamy tomato sauce is perfect served with cavatappi, rotini, rigatoni, bow-tie, or any small, medium, or large-sized pasta. Pair with cooked shrimp or chicken for quick pasta dishes, serve atop a homemade Chicken Parmesan or use in place of marinara for a pink or rosé pizza sauce.

Air Fryer Recipes

Air Fryer Eggplant

Side Dish Recipes

Couscous Salad

Cookie Recipes

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Asian Recipes

Stir Fry Sauce

Parma Rosa Sauce

By Meggan Hill

This easy Parma Rosa Sauce is pink from a mixture of classic marinara and heavy cream, a luscious, delicious combination loaded with parmesan. It's a heavenly combination served over penne or any other pasta you love.

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Servings 10 servings (½ cup each)

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Italian

Calories 152

5 from 2 votes

ReviewPrint

Ingredients 

US CustomaryMetric

• ▢ penne pasta or other pasta
• ▢ Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• ▢ 3 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 3 cloves garlic minced (see note 1)
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• ▢ 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• ▢ 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes undrained
• ▢ 1 teaspoon granulated sugar (see note 2)
• ▢ 1/2 cup heavy cream (see note 3)
• ▢ 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese plus more, for serving (see note 4)

Instructions 

• In a large pot, bring 4 quarts water and 1 tablespoon salt to boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, about 9 minutes. Drain well.
• Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, heat olive oil until shimmering. Stir in garlic, basil, and oregano until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
• Stir in crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, sugar (if using), ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered until flavors have blended, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in heavy cream and parmesan until smooth. Simmer until sauce thickens, about 1 to 2 minutes longer. Remove from heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I like ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper). Serve with pasta.

Recipe Video

Notes

1. Garlic: Substitute ½ teaspoon garlic powder for the fresh, and add in Step 2.
2. Sugar: This is an optional sauce ingredient; I prefer just 1 teaspoon to balance out the acidity in the canned tomatoes. Sweeten to taste or feel free to omit.
3. Heavy cream: For the richest results, choose heavy cream. Light cream or half and half also work, but will give you a slightly less decadent texture due to the lower fat content.
4. Parmesan cheese: Freshly grated parmesan melts better than the grated Parmesan from the shaker, but the green can kind also works well in this creamy pasta sauce.
5. Yield: This recipe makes about 5 cups (1 quart) sauce. It’s enough for at least 2 pounds of pasta.
6. Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Nutrition

Serving: 0.5 cupCalories: 152kcalCarbohydrates: 9gProtein: 6gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 20mgSodium: 273mgPotassium: 337mgFiber: 2gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 474IUVitamin C: 11mgCalcium: 170mgIron: 2mg

Did you make this recipe?Tag @culinaryhill on Instagram so we can admire your masterpiece! #culinaryhill