VELVETY EGGPLANT, that beloved summer vegetable, comes to life in this easy pasta sauce. If you’re short on time, you can make the sauce ahead; it tastes even better the next day. For a more substantial dish, serve it with your favorite Italian-style chicken sausage. A short, sturdy pasta like rigatoni, rotini, or penne is the best choice for this chunky sauce.
Recipe information
Yield
serves 4
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
Step 2
In a roasting pan, toss the eggplant with the olive oil. Scatter the onion over the eggplant and sprinkle the brown sugar on top. Bake for about 45 minutes, stirring twice to prevent the edges from browning.
Step 3
While the eggplant is baking, combine the garlic, herbs, salt, red pepper flakes, bay leaves, white wine, and diced tomatoes in a medium bowl.
Step 4
After 45 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 350˚F.
Step 5
Remove the roasting pan from the oven and stir the tomato mixture into the roasted eggplant. Cover the pan tightly with foil and bake for an additional 1 1/2 hours. The eggplant should be very tender. Remove the pan from the oven and stir in the capers. Let the eggplant cool, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Remove the bay leaves.
Step 6
Cook the pasta according to package directions and toss with the sauce. Serve warm.
Make Ahead
Step 7
The sauce can be refrigerated for up to 5 days. Once combined, the dish can be refrigerated for 1 day and then reheated in a 350°F. oven for 30 minutes.
