Pasta with Eggplant, Tomato & Olive Sauce

Eggplant, tomatoes, and olives be part of forces for a comforting, hearty sauce for pasta. This recipe is filled with taste and makes for an ideal vegetarian or vegan meal.

Over the summer time I used to be lucky sufficient to get invited to remain at a pal’s home in North Carolina for a bit in order that I may escape the confines of my New York Metropolis house in the course of the pandemic. There are many nice issues that got here out of my keep there, and one in every of them is that this recipe.

There have been three of us altogether: a fellow culinary faculty graduate who likes to cook dinner as a lot as I do and a kitchen novice that primarily was accountable for the drinks. We largely fended for ourselves for breakfast and lunch, however at all times ate dinner collectively. There have been actually many days when dinner was loved eating at a restaurant outside or picked up one thing to go, however we additionally had numerous scrumptious meals at house that we ready ourselves.

With one in every of my housemates sticking to a largely vegetarian eating regimen, this is among the recipes that I got here up with a type of nights. This pasta with eggplant, tomato, and olive sauce is one which vegetarians and meat eaters alike will take pleasure in. And as a bonus, it’s even vegan-friendly in the event you don’t serve it with Parmesan or use a non-dairy cheese.

In making it the primary time, I actually simply raided the fridge and pantry to see what I may throw collectively. A little bit little bit of this, a spoonful of that. That by-the-seat-of-your-pants cooking that I like however hardly ever give myself the liberty to do ought to I need to share my creation with you. Nicely, after tasting it, we have been all fairly happy with the outcomes. So off I went to attempt to recreate (and measure) the magic in order that I may put up it right here so that you can make for your self.

I bear in mind sharing an image of it again then on social media and somebody mentioned that I used to be making pasta alla norma, the basic Italian pasta dish with eggplant and tomatoes. Whereas this recipe has all of these issues, it’s lacking the attribute ricotta salata to grant it that identify. Then in doing analysis to kind up this put up, it appeared just like the sauce was near eggplant puttanesca due to the olives, however a basic puttanesca often has capers included too. So not fairly the one, neither is it actually the opposite. Therefore the lengthy title for this recipe. (Nonetheless, I do like to think about this recipe as what would occur if pasta alla norma and puttanesca had a child.)

My first iteration used up the entire bucatini in the home, which I feel to be the perfect of the lengthy pasta shapes, so I as an alternative used some lengthy fusilli from the pantry in my recreation (and images). And whereas any form in actuality works simply effective, bucatini is my pasta of selection for this specific dish.

Yield: About 6 servings

Pasta with Eggplant, Tomato & Olive Sauce

Prep Time:
20 minutes

Cook dinner Time:
35 minutes

Whole Time:
55 minutes

Eggplant, tomatoes, and olives be part of forces for a comforting, hearty sauce for pasta. This recipe is filled with taste and makes for an ideal vegetarian or vegan meal.

Substances

• Kosher salt
• Additional-virgin olive, as wanted (I used 3/4 cup)
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning mix
• 1 1/2 teaspoons crushed pink pepper flakes
• 2 small (1 1/2 kilos) Italian eggplant, reduce into 1/2-inch cube
• 1/2 cup sliced Kalamata olives
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/2 cup pink wine
• One 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon recent oregano leaves (optionally available)
• 1 pound lengthy pasta, akin to bucatini
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

Directions

1. Set a big pot of water with some salt on the range to convey to a boil for the pasta.
2. In the meantime, place a big skillet or different pan over medium warmth with some oil; add the onion, black pepper, and a few salt and cook dinner till the onion begins to melt, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, Italian seasoning, and pink pepper flakes and cook dinner till aromatic, 1 minute extra.
3. Add the eggplant and olives, season with salt, and cook dinner, stirring frequently and including extra oil as wanted, till the eggplant has softened, about 10 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook dinner for two minutes extra. Deglaze with the pink wine, scraping up any caught on bits from the underside of the pan and stirring all of it collectively.
4. Add the crushed tomatoes to the eggplant (swish about 1/2 cup water across the can and add that to the skillet to to ensure you get the entire tomatoes) and let simmer gently, stirring frequently, for quarter-hour. Add within the recent oregano, if utilizing, for the final minute or 2 of cooking.
5. In the meantime, cook dinner the pasta within the salted boiling water till simply shy of al dente. Reserve a few of the pasta cooking water after which drain the pasta.
6. Combine the pasta into the sauce together with a few of the reserved pasta cooking water (about 1/4 cup) and let all of it cook dinner collectively till the pasta is al dente, 1 to 2 minutes. Style and modify for seasoning. Serve with some Parmesan cheese sprinkled on prime.

And there we’ve got it of us. That is my final recipe right here for the foreseeable future. Thanks for following alongside. And don’t fear, this web site will keep up so that you could revisit and (re-cook) your whole favourite recipes from The Hungry Hutch.