Pasta Alla Norma

3 medium eggplants (about 2 pounds) , washed, NOT peeled, and cut into ½ to ¾ inch cubes (if using long slender eggplant you can slice it instead)

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt

4 cloves garlic , minced (be sure to use fresh, pre-minced store-bought garlic doesn't even come close in flavor)

1 small yellow onion , finely chopped

28 ounce quality whole plum tomatoes

3 tablespoons quality tomato paste

1 teaspoon sugar (to help compensate for less anything less than the very best sun-ripened imported Italian tomatoes)

1 ½ teaspoons sea salt or kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

½ cup roughly chopped fresh basil leaves , plus extra for garnish

14 ounces dried short pasta (e.g., rigatoni, penne, rigatoncini, etc) , cooked until al dente, reserving some of the pasta water

coarsely grated ricotta salata for serving , ricotta salata is traditional but if needed can substitute freshly grated Parmesan

Directions at daringgourmet.com

Never lose a recipe again, not even if the original website goes away! Use the Copy Me That button to create your own complete copy of any recipe that you find online. Learn more! It's free!

Page footer