This divine pasta alla Norma is a vegetarian dish that celebrates simplicity. Featuring aubergines, San Marzano tomatoes and ricotta salata.
Servings: 4
Best pasta match: pennette or rigatone
Ingredients for 4:
- Peeled Tomatoes 500gr
- Pasta: rigatone or pennette 400 gr
- Ricotta salata 200 gr
- 2 aubergines of medium size
- 2 cloves of garlic, basil (10-12 leaves)
- Extra virgin olive oil, salt and black pepper
Preparation:
Wash the aubergines before slicing. Slice them vertically so that each piece is around 4 mm thick. Ensure you leave some round cut slices for decoration.
Place the sliced aubergine in a colander and apply rock salt. Cover with a plate and apply a bowl of water on top of the plate. The weight of the bowl will press onto the aubergines, contributing (with the salt) to removing their naturally bitter taste and excess water.
For the sauce:
On medium heat, put some olive oil in a pan. Add the garlic cloves and sizzle until brown. Add peeled tomatoes and cook over low heat for at least 20 minutes.Sieve the tomatoes and the cook once again over low heat until the sauce reaches the desired thickness. Once fully cooked, add half of the fresh basil leaves.
Rinse the aubergines from the salt and dry them gently with a cloth. Heat few spoons of olive oil and once hot fry them until brown.
Move the aubergines to absorbent paper and eliminate part of the oil.
Cook the pasta in the meantime.
You can also grate the ricotta salata and keep it aside for later.
While the pasta is cooking, cut the aubergines into strips and put them in a pan together with part of the tomato sauce.
When pasta is al dente, drain it and put it in the pan together with the aubergines and the tomato sauce. Finish cooking the pasta with the sauce and the added aubergines you had set aside earlier on. Add the grated ricotta and remaining basil leaves.
Buon appetito!
