Who can refuse a hot, creamy bowl of pasta, loaded with veggies and cheese?
This pasta with sautéed eggplant and sun dried tomatoes coated with a creamy sauce makes for a satisfying vegetarian dinner, and it can be thrown together in about 20 minutes. A deliciously simple veggie pasta for a perfect weeknight meal.
Ricotta cheese perfectly melts into the tomato sauce and coats every single pasta bite. It’s a fantastic alternative to the tomato sauce classic. It’s minimal. It’s light, loaded with veggies and with just the right balance of flavors and textures.
It is simplicity at its finest: just pasta, a deeply flavored tomato sauce with eggplant and sun dried tomatoes, and a creaminess that cuts the tang of tomato sauce.
Hop on over to Instagram to see how to make this in my highlights!
This dish can totally stand on its own as a meal. But if you’re looking for something to round this out into a more multi-dimensional meal or impress friends with a full blown dinner party, you could add a salad, grilled chicken, bread… Or sauté the eggplant together with some pork mince or pancetta.
3 more easy pasta dishes:
Tagliatelle with meat and kale pesto
Pasta with smoked salmon and chorizo
15 minute broccoli pasta with basil oil
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You need
- 250 g (0.55 pound) pasta
- 1 eggplant, cut into cubes
- 220 g (1 cup) sun dried tomatoes with oil
- 1 shallot, finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 250 ml (1 cup) tomato passata
- 150 g (5.2 oz) ricotta
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- sea salt + black pepper
How to
Boil the pasta in salted water until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking water.
Heat 5 tbsp oil from the sun dried tomatoes in a skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and shallot, cook until soft and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Stir in the eggplant and the sun dried tomatoes with their remaining oil. Cook for 5 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and bring to a boil, simmer for 5 minutes. Season with chili flakes, paprika, salt and pepper.
Stir in the ricotta and pasta. If needed, add a big splash of the reserved cooking water. Stir so everything is well-coated, and cook until heated through and the flavors melt, for about 1 minute. Serve immediately. Enjoy.
Hop on over to Instagram to see how to make this in my highlights!
If you give this recipe a try, leave a comment or mention me on Instagram @anna_s_table. I’d love to see what you’re making. Happy cooking!
It’s very tasty!
This was delicious! A keeper!