Pasta with Eggplant, Cherry Tomato and Olive Sauce

Sunday was another one of those magical WDC days, in my book. There was something about the air pressure that almost defeated my I-had-too-much-fun-last-night-and-am-now-suffering feeling. Almost.

My husband assured me that what I really needed to get rid of that feeling was a fifty mile bike ride, naturally. We set out obnoxiously later than planned (I wouldn’t trade a night with out-of-town friends for an early start, don’t get me wrong) and it took about 30 miles to feel like I wasn’t going to fall off of the bike. But what a gorgeous ride. We made it almost to Sugarloaf , but turned around just short of it.

In hindsight, it’s sort of hilarious how self-assured I was feeling at mile 45. Because at mile 46 I was ready to vote Republican if it would have made the ride end any sooner (OK, OK, it wasn’t that bad...).

We slurped ourselves home and tried to sort out dinner. We had had plans to go out, to enjoy the oddly cool evening weather, but we were not ready for prime time. I think I was drooling on myself, and husband was not much better.

Having raided my parent’s garden earlier in the day, I had handfuls of cherry tomatoes at my disposal. This sauce was easy, and tasted even better the next day.

Pasta with Eggplant and Cherry Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:

½ lb pasta
1 TB olive oil
½ onion, diced
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 eggplants, chopped into roughly 1 inch pieces
2-3 c cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1-2 c water
¼ c Kalamata olives, chopped
2 TB tomato paste
1 TB balsamic vinegar
1 tsp red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
1 handful basil
Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preparation:

Cook pasta according to directions, in salted water. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, add olive oil to a skillet that has been heated over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft, about four minutes.

Add eggplant and about 1 c water to skillet. Combine well. Cook covered, over medium heat, until eggplant is softened. Stir periodically to ensure nothing sticks to the bottom. Add more water as needed.

Uncover, and add tomatoes to mixture and cook until tomatoes are softened, about 3 minutes. Add olives, tomato paste, balsamic vinegar and red pepper flakes and stir to combine.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Prior to serving, add basil. Heat from sauce will wilt basil. Serve with cheese on the side. Serves 4.

Pasta with Garden Vegetable Sauce

I do apologize for being so out of touch! I've been by the sea, and other fun fabulous locales. This lazy summer afternoon finds me at the Cocoa Bar in Brooklyn- I highly recommend it. Lovely garden behind the shop and very tasty iced coffee. Perfect.

In my absence, my trusty garden has been hard at work. I overcame my doubts and finally plucked my one eggplant. Now I know how only children must feel- so much pressure. Anyway, the eggplant shined, it was only my heavy-handedness in picking it that caused the jewel distress. The stems of eggplants are very reedy and woody, and apparently snap if you twist them. Who knew! So, the plant did sustain some trauma (the branch the eggplant was on split in two) but hopefully, it will knit itself back together.

Thank you now for indulging in my cheesy vegetable-scape:

These were all the veggies I found waiting for me when I returned from my eastern seaboard adventure. Those vaguely albino looking fellows are yellow peppers. And the squash in front is a mutant pattypan, grown beyond all reason.

With these vegetables, I made a lovely pasta sauce:

Pasta with Garden Vegetable Sauce

Ingredients:

1/2 lb pasta

1 TB olive oil 

1/2 onion, chopped

5 cloves garlic, minced

1 large eggplant, cubed

2 peppers, any color, chopped

2 lbs assorted squash, cubed

1/2 c water

2 TB tomato paste

2 TB capers

1/4 cup chopped Kalamata olives

Freshly ground black pepper

salt to taste

Preparation:

Cook pasta according to directions, in salted water.  Drain and set aside.  

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add onions and garlic and saute until soft, about four minutes.  Add eggplant, peppers, and squash to pan.  Turn vegetables to coat with onions and garlic.  Saute for two minutes, stirring often.   

Turn heat to low, and add 1/4 cup water to skillet, and cover. Add more water periodically as needed to prevent vegetables from sticking to bottom of pan.  Cook until vegetables are soft, about five- seven minutes.  

Uncover mixture and add tomato paste, olives and capers.  Combine thoroughly and cook over low heat for two minutes to allow flavors to combine.  Season with pepper. Season with salt to taste. (Note: salt may not be necessary as the olives and capers bring much saltiness to the sauce.) 

To serve, top portions of pasta with sauce.  Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese.  Serves four.