Sicilian Eggplant Pasta Dish (Print Version)
# Ingredients:
→ For the marinara sauce
01 -
1 28-ounce can whole San Marzano tomatoes with juice
02 -
¼ cup good quality olive oil
03 -
4 garlic cloves, crushed
04 -
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
05 -
1 tablespoon thick tomato paste
06 -
1 teaspoon regular salt
07 -
½ teaspoon coarse black pepper
08 -
2 fresh basil sprigs
→ For the pasta
09 -
2 ½ pounds round eggplant
10 -
regular salt
11 -
good quality olive oil
12 -
1 pound tube pasta
13 -
¼ teaspoon regular salt
14 -
½ cup ripped basil leaves, extra for topping
15 -
2 cups fresh marinara sauce (or store-bought if needed)
16 -
Crumbly ricotta salata (or swap with pecorino or cotija)
# Instructions:
01 -
Dump tomatoes and juice into a bowl and squash them with your fingers or a spoon, then put aside.
02 -
Put olive oil and garlic in a big pan over medium heat. When garlic starts bubbling, give it a stir now and then until it's golden and smells amazing, around 5 minutes. Watch your heat – you don't want burnt garlic. Toss in red pepper and cook another 30 seconds.
03 -
Take the pan off heat and let oil cool a bit. Slowly mix tomato paste into the oil and garlic. Be super careful so hot oil doesn't splash and burn you when adding paste—cook for a minute or two. Add your crushed tomatoes to the pan with oil mixture and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Drop in basil sprigs and let it come to a boil. Turn down to a gentle simmer, stirring once in a while for 30 minutes. Mix in the oil that floats up, then fish out basil and garlic. Take off the heat.
04 -
While sauce bubbles away, get your eggplant ready. Heat your oven to 425°F. Chop off eggplant ends. Cut them down the middle, then slice into ½-inch half-circles. Coat a baking sheet with olive oil and lay out eggplant pieces flat. Use two sheets if they're crowded. Brush tops with more oil, sprinkle salt, and stick in the oven until they turn golden, about 30 minutes.
05 -
While eggplant bakes, grab a big pot, fill with water and bring it to a rolling boil. Throw in plenty of salt once it's bubbling. Drop in pasta and cook till it's still got some bite. Scoop out ¾ cup cooking water before draining pasta.
06 -
Throw the pasta, basil, sauce, and roasted eggplant back in the big pasta pot. Slowly add cooking water (start with ½ cup, add more if it looks dry) and mix everything well. Give it a taste and add more salt or pepper if needed. Dump into a serving dish and top with freshly grated ricotta salata and extra basil leaves.
# Notes:
01 -
Can't find ricotta salata? Just grab pecorino or cotija instead. Even torn fresh mozzarella works great in this dish, though it won't have that tangy sheep's milk flavor.