Ingredients
- 180g mini-penne pasta
- 4 aubergine
- 500g tomato passata (pureed tomatoes)
- 2 mozzarella, cut into dice
- chili pepper
- basil
- salt
- 1 onion, chopped
- extra virgin olive oil
- sunflower oil for frying the aubergine
Directions
Step 1
Dice the aubergine and put them in a sieve sprinkled with coarse salt, cover with a plate with a weight on top and leave for an hour to get rid of the excess water.
Step 2
Rinse, dry and fry the aubergine cubes in plenty of sunflower oil. Drain and dry on paper towels.
Step 3
Dice the mozzarella and let the liquid drain.
Step 4
Sauté the chopped onion with the chili pepper in a large frying pan in extra virgin olive oil. When the onion has softened, add the tomato passata and let the sauce thicken over a low heat for about 20 minutes. Add the fried aubergine and after a few minutes turn off the heat.
Step 5
Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water and drain very al dente (2 minutes before the penne are done). Toss the pasta in the sauce. Add torn basil leaves and the diced mozzarella (keep a few cubes to one side).
Step 6
Mix well and put in an oven dish. Sprinkle the remaining cubes of mozzarella on the top and place under the grill in the oven, pre-heated to 220°C for 2-3 minutes until nicely-browned on the top.
