Pasta alla Norma

Sometimes the simplest recipes make the tastiest of dishes!

Ingredients
serves 4
350g pasta, such as Maccheroncini, Casarecce or Rigatoni
200g Ricotta salata (hard ricotta cheese), grated
500g Aubergines
800g tomatoes, ripe
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
15g Basil
2 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
vegetable oil (for frying the aubergine)
salt

oil for frying

Method

Cut the aubergine into approx. 5mm slices then layer in a colander, sprinkling each slice with salt. Cover with a damp tea towel and set aside for an hour. (If you're short on time you could skip this part.)

Bring a pan of water to the boil and drop in the tomatoes, having cut a small cross at the base of each one. Simmer for less than a minute until you can see the skin begin to peel.  Remove them from the water and cool down under cold water tap.  Peel the skin and set the tomatoes to one side.

In another pan heat the olive oil on a medium temperature and gently fry two cloves of garlic until they begin to colour. Then add the tomatoes and cook for 20 minutes, pressing on them with a wooden spoon to crush them down into a sauce.  Season with salt.

Pass the tomatoes through a sieve then return to the pan and bring back to a low simmer and cook for a further 15 minutes.  Remove from the heat and add a few torn leaves of basil.

Rinse and dry the salted aubergines.  Then in a deep frying pan heat the vegetable oil on a high temperature and add the aubergine slices in batches. Remove from the oil when they are a golden brown in colour. Drain them on kitchen paper then slice them into strips.

In another pan boil the pasta in salted water as recommended on the packet.

Once all is cooked and ready to serve add the aubergine to the tomato sauce. Then drain the pasta and also add to the sauce.  Put the pan onto a medium heat briefly, gently stirring the dish to redistribute the heat.  Remove from the heat. Add the grated cheese and stir a little.  Taste and season with some salt.

Serve in a warm bowl, topped with a sprinkling of more grated cheese and a few small basil leaves.