Spaghetti with Baked Eggplant and Pangrattato

I absolutely love pasta. I mean who doesn't? It is one of the most versatile dishes in the world- enjoyed as salads, stews, soups and of course with pasta sauce. I love cooking pasta. This is one of the first dishes I had learned when I started out. 

Over the years, I have been inspired by many great cooks, especially by Jamie Oliver and Gennaro Contaldo that make some incredible Italian dishes together. I have watched a great deal of their TV shows as well as read a lot of their recipe books and I must say making pasta was never easier.

To me a good pasta dish is all about the sauce. If the sauce is botched up, the whole dish will be ruined, even if the pasta is cooked perfectly. It's better to get both right for your full money's worth. So, I am going to share MY experience with you guys so that you'll can make a better pasta dish:

• Add your pasta to generously salted boiling water and not to cool water then boil. This makes the pasta really soggy and unappealing. Salting helps season the pasta as well as develop the flavour of the water that HAS to be added to the cooking sauce later.

• Stir your pasta regularly and give them a taste to see their doneness. (Very important). I never follow packet instructions. I like to taste and tell. :)

• Ladel in some of the pasta cooking water into the sauce to make it even richer. Being really starchy, it lends a beautiful flavour to the sauce as well as thickens it.

•  Stop cooking the pasta 2 minutes less than what is instructed on the packet and add it into the sauce. The pasta will finish cooking perfectly in it as well as soak in all the flavours.

Now, for this dish, I have taken inspiration from the classic Italian dish- Eggplant Parmigiana which is basically slices of eggplant baked in a hot oven with tomato sauce and lots of parmesan cheese. I have attempted to play around with these flavours by combining the freshness of a slow cooked tomato sauce and the earthiness and richness of beautifully marinated slices of eggplant. To complement this I have made a fragrant pangrattato (flavoured breadcrumbs) that replaces the parmesan cheese because, well, I am still a broke student..*cries in debt*.

Check out the recipe down below and let me know your thoughts in the comments. Don't forget to subscribe to my blog for weekly recipes sent fresh into your mailbox. 

Peace.

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INGREDIENTS (makes about 3 hearty portions)

For the Tomato Sauce

- 2 tbsp olive oil + butter

- 6 cloves of garlic, sliced fine

- 1 tsp chilli flakes

- 2 onions, roughly chopped

- 2 cans of tinned tomatoes or 600 gm chopped ripe tomatoes

- 1.5 cups of basil, torn
- salt and lots of pepper

- 300 gm good quality spaghetti

For the baked eggplant (you could replace this with any meat if you like)

- 1 medium sized eggplant, halved lengthwise and then cut in a cross section to get semi circles

- 4 cloves of garlic, chopped

- juice of 1/2 a lemon

- 1 cup of finely chopped herbs- I used basil

- 1 tbsp olive oil

- salt and pepper to taste

For the Pangrattato

- 4 slices of whole wheat bread, lightly toasted

- 3 cloves of garlic

- 1 tsp chilli flakes

- 1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground

- A handful of chopped basil 

- 1 tbsp lemon juice

How to make Spaghetti with baked Eggplant and Pangrattato

• Start off with the marination of the eggplants.
• In a large bowl, mix the garlic, lemon juice, herbs, oil and salt-pepper
• Throw in the eggplants and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours (overnight if it's meat).

• Start your tomato sauce an hour after the marination starts.
• In a deep casserole, fry off some garlic and chilli flakes in olive oil and butter on a medium heat for a minute. If you have some basil stalks, chop them and add them in.
• Add in your onions, season and sweat gently for 20 minutes on a low flame till they become sweet and caramelized.   
• Once the onions are done, throw in your tomatoes and season them. Simmer them gently for 30 minutes till all the flavours are combined beautifully.

• Meanwhile, remove the eggplants from the fridge and let them rest till warm at room temperature. (There will be a lot of juice that will be released. DO NOT THROW IT AWAY. Use it in the pasta sauce.)
• Pat them dry and bake them in a preheated 175℃ oven for 20 minutes, turning them over at the halfway stage.
• At about 15 minutes into the tomatoes, stir in your torn basil and let it simmer for another 15 minutes. Blend once done.
• Cook your pasta according to the packet instructions
• Blend all your pangrattato ingredients and fry them in some oil till they turn crispy and brown.

• Ok, so your eggplants, tomato sauce, pangrattato and pasta are all ready. Time to plate.
• Throw the pasta, with some of its starchy water, into the tomato sauce and simmer it for about a minute. Add in your baked eggplants and pangrattato and stir gently. Adjust the seasoning. With the help of a large fork, swirl the spaghetti around and place it onto a clean plate. Top it off with some olive oil, freshly torn basil and your pangrattato.
• Buon Appetito

PS: I would suggest using 800 gm tomatoes and more pasta water because my version turned out a little dry. 

 

Cheers.