Pasta Alla Norma (Baked Penne With Eggplant)
- Ready In:
- 1hr
- Ingredients:
- 10
- Serves:
-
6
ingredients
- 2 lbs eggplants, cut into 1/4 inch-thick slices
- 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lb penne
- 2 cups basic tomato sauce
- 1 cup toasted breadcrumbs
- 1⁄2 cup freshly grated pecorino romano cheese
- 10 fresh basil leaves, roughly torn
- 8 ounces ricotta salata, for grating
- salt
- fresh ground black pepper
directions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
- Add the penne and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 2 minutes less than the instructions on the package. Strain the pasta and rinse under cold water until cool.
- Put the pasta in a large bowl and toss with 1 cup of the pasta sauce.
- Meanwhile, in a 12 inch sauté pan, heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium-high heat until almost smoking.
- Working in batches, sauté the eggplant slices, seasoning them with salt and pepper, turning once, until golden brown on both sides.
- Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to drain.
- Preheat oven to 375°F
- Grease a 9 by 13 inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil (I used cooking spray).
- Cover the bottom of the baking dish with 1/4 cup of the tomato sauce.
- Top with half the bread crumbs, then add half the pasta. Arrange half of the eggplant slices, overlapping them slightly, on top of the pasta.
- Dot about 1/4 cup of tomato sauce over the eggplant, and top with half of the pecorino and half of the basil.
- Top with the remaining pasta, arrange the remaining eggplant over the pasta, and dot with the remaining tomato sauce.
- Sprinkle with the remaining pecorino and basil, and then the remaining bread crumbs, and drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil.
- Bake for 45 minutes then let stand for 10 minutes.
- Grate ricotta salata (provolone or pecorino work too!) over individual portions before serving.
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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
I'm 23 years old and I live in Trinidad. One of the islands in the Caribbean.
I love baking and have a major sweet tooth but I am trying to cook more savoury foods and I am enjoying trying new recipes.
Recently I have come to love photographing the food I make. Too bad they don't all come out photo worthy, but at least they still taste good! lol
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