Pasta Alla Norma (baked Penne With Eggplant)

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 2 lbs eggplants, cut into 1/4 inch-thick slices
• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 lb penne
• 2 cups basic tomato sauce
• 1 cup toasted breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup freshly grated pecorino romano cheese
• 10 fresh basil leaves, roughly torn
• 8 ounces ricotta salata, for grating
• salt
• fresh ground black pepper

Recipe

• 1 bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
• 2 add the penne and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 2 minutes less than the instructions on the package. strain the pasta and rinse under cold water until cool.
• 3 put the pasta in a large bowl and toss with 1 cup of the pasta sauce.
• 4 meanwhile, in a 12 inch sauté pan, heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium-high heat until almost smoking.
• 5 working in batches, sauté the eggplant slices, seasoning them with salt and pepper, turning once, until golden brown on both sides.
• 6 transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to drain.
• 7 preheat oven to 375°f
• 8 grease a 9 by 13 inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil (i used cooking spray).
• 9 cover the bottom of the baking dish with 1/4 cup of the tomato sauce.
• 10 top with half the bread crumbs, then add half the pasta. arrange half of the eggplant slices, overlapping them slightly, on top of the pasta.
• 11 dot about 1/4 cup of tomato sauce over the eggplant, and top with half of the pecorino and half of the basil.
• 12 top with the remaining pasta, arrange the remaining eggplant over the pasta, and dot with the remaining tomato sauce.
• 13 sprinkle with the remaining pecorino and basil, and then the remaining bread crumbs, and drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil.
• 14 bake for 45 minutes then let stand for 10 minutes.
• 15 grate ricotta salata (provolone or pecorino work too!) over individual portions before serving.