2 servings
- 200 g (7 oz) whole meal penne
- 2 medium aubergines, peeled and diced
- 4-5 red tomatoes, chopped
- Soy cheese (optional)
- 1 garlic clove, peeled
- Fresh basil
- Ground pepper
- Frying oil
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt
Drain the aubergines in a colander with a weight on their top. Do this operation in advance to allow the aubergines to lost all their bitterness.
Gently fry the garlic clove in a frying pan. Add the chopped tomatoes and cover. Salt and cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes, until it loses all the water in excess. Add some basil leaves and turn off the heat.
Put on the water for the pasta. When boiling, add the salt and the whole meal penne.
Fry the aubergines until golden on every side (remember to stir them very often). Drain and let them rest on blotting paper.
Drain the pasta al dente and put it in the sauce frying pan. Sprinkle with ground pepper and mix well. Add some roughly-grated soy cheese (optional). The one I used came from London and, by a happy chance, it vaguely resembled the baked-ricotta-cheese usually used in the classic Pasta alla Norma.
Freely readapted from a Slow Food-recipe (where the tomatoes were peeled as first thing).
