Penne alla vodka is an Italian pasta dish always made with vodka and penne pasta often with heavy cream, crushed tomatoes, onion, and sometimes sausage or bacon. According to Pasquale Bruno, Jr., author of "The Ultimate Pasta Cookbook," penne alla vodka was invented at Dante, a restaurant in Bologna, Italy. Other historians of the culinary arts recognize James Doty, a graduate of Columbia University, as the inventor of penne a la vodka.

Paula Franzese, a law professor, claims that her father Luigi Franzese, born in Naples, Italy in 1931, devised the first incarnation of penne alla vodka, which he called penne alla Russia because of the addition of the vodka to his tomato and cream sauce base. He first prepared the dish table side for patrons at New York City's Orsini's restaurant in the early 1970s. Orsini's, owned by Armando and Elio Orsini, was one of the most acclaimed restaurants of its time, hosting regulars that included Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Sammy Davis, Jr., Mick Jagger and scores of literary, entertainment and business icons.

Word of penne alla Russia quickly spread, and soon it began appearing on other menus throughout the New York region. Franzese was asked to appear on various talk shows to demonstrate his magic in the kitchen. The most memorable of these appearances is found on The Joe Franklin Show.

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