Ingredients (4 people):
- 320g rigatoni
- 2 medium-sized eggplants, sliced
- Salt
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- 5 cloves of garlic
- 1kg San-Marzano tomatoes
- 150g salted sheep’s ricotta
- Fresh basil
Instructions:
Begin by thinly slicing the eggplants into a bowl and dicing the tomatoes into a large pot.
Place the eggplant slices in a colander, sprinkle with salt, and let it sit for about 15 minutes. This helps to remove excess moisture and bitterness.
Add a pinch of salt, 3 cloves of garlic, and a handful of basil leaves to the tomatoes, cover with a lid and cook over a low heat for 20 to 30 minutes.
In the meantime, rinse the salt off the eggplant and pat it dry with a paper towel. Then pour some olive oil in a pan and heat.
Once hot (around 170°C), fry a few eggplant slices at a time until they turn golden in colour, flipping them over every so often. Place the cooked ones on a paper towel covered tray to remove excess oil.
After around 30 minutes, remove the basil and the garlic from the tomatoes, and transfer the tomatoes to a food mill and pass them though, allowing the smooth juice into a bowl underneath.
Transfer the smooth tomato juice into a large pot with 2 cloves of garlic, a handful of basil leaves and a table spoon of olive oil, and allow simmer on a low heat for around 30 minutes, occasionally stirring.
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the pasta according to the package instructions until al dente.
Add the drained pasta to the tomato sauce, mixing everything together quickly until well combined.
On a plate add the pasta and the fried eggplant together, and garnish with grated ricotta and fresh basil.
Italy with Amore 