Penne with Roasted Eggplants and Tomatoes

20. May 2008 Pasta + Noodles + Rice 0

I started my Saturday famished. The last of my wisdom teeth was extracted and the only thing I could eat was soup for my last two meals. The Vicodin didn’t quite affect me the way I wanted it to so I was left to fend for myself when I woke up. There were only a couple of eggplants in the fridge and one large tomato, but there were plenty of fresh herbs on the counter. When I have to create a quick meal without using too many ingredients, I usually turn to pasta–there’s always a box of some kind of pasta in the cupboard. I had some leftover pesto in a jar so I decided to add a dollop of that, too, to add some basil-y taste to the dish. I recreated one of my favorite sandwiches, pressed pesto and Gruyere-Parmesan, to match.

Ingredients:
2 cups of penne
2 eggplants, cut lengthwise then halved
1 tomato, quartered then halved
1 sprig of rosemary, roughly chopped
1 sprig of sage, roughly chopped
1 tbsp of pesto
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
1 dried Thai chile, crushed
lemon juice
oil, salt, pepper

1. In a large mixing bowl, toss eggplants and tomatoes with vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. Transfer vegetables onto a baking sheet, flesh side up. Roast in the oven for about 15 minutes or until tomatoes are soft and a little burnt on the outside. Remove from oven and set aside to cool a little bit.
2. Meanwhile, cook penne al dente. Drain and transfer to a serving bowl.
3. When ready to serve, add the vegetables with the pasta. Toss with rosemary, sage and pesto. Squirt some lemon juice and sprinkle with chile to taste.