Eggplant Madness part deux - Ragu
October 09, 2007
Eggplants and tomatoes - like peas and carrots, these tasty vegetables go hand in had. I tried a recipe from one of my many Jaime Oliver cookbooks, and altered it slightly to reflect the produce I bought. For instance, I chose to substitute the canned tomatoes for the fresh heirloom variety I purchased at the Farmer's Market. I also used shallots in lieu of white or yellow onion, and adjusted texture by adding tomato paste. The sauce was delicious - I can't wait to make it again.Ingredients:
- 4 small eggplants, small chop (each eggplant should be no bigger than a baseball) or substitute one large eggplant
- 1 16 oz can of whole peeled tomatoes, chopped with liquid (or substitute 2 large ripe tomatoes, diced, + 2 tbsp tomato paste in 1/3 c of water or white wine)
- 3 small shallots, minced (or 1/2 medium yellow or white onion)
- 4 cloves of garlic
- handful of fresh basil, with stems, chopped
- Salt, pepper, crushed red pepper - to taste
- 1/4 c fresh cream
- Pasta of your choice
Step One: Chop the eggplant into small bite sized pieces. Saute the eggplant in 4 tbsp of olive oil; cook in a pot over medium heat for 7 minutes. Add the onions and garlic; add more olive oil if necessary. Stir pot frequently to prevent sticking.
Step Two: Once eggplant becomes soft, and onions translucent, add tomatoes. Add salt and pepper to taste, along with chopped stem of basil. Cover and simmer for 8 minutes. Add crushed red pepper to taste
Step Three: When sauce becomes thick and vegetables begin breaking apart, add remainder of basil; add cream. Heat for another 5 minutes. Serve with whatever pasta suits your fancy (I prefer penne). Mr. Oliver suggests that you add pieces of fresh mozzarella to the pasta and then coat in sauce so that oozing, stringy bites dance around each fork full.
The sauce is very simple and tastes amazing. If you are skeptical of eggplant, I suggest you try eating it in this sauce where the eggplant is featured more in the background of flavors, and then moving on to something more bold if you dare - like Eggplant Sorrentina.
