This recipe was inspired by a recent edition of Everyday Food magazine. Sarah Carey called it a Summer Ratatouille pasta. It has Eggplant, Tomatos, Peppers and Zucchini- all grilled. The grilled tomatoes and eggplant broke apart and coated the pasta creating an amazingly fresh and very flavorful sauce... Mike and I were both shocked how delicious this was. The texture and taste was almost like a meaty bolognese sauce- but it is all vegetable. Really amazing. This is going to be my 'go-to' pasta for the summer when I'm at the market drooling over all of the beautiful produce- I'll know exactly what I'm going to be making for dinner. Oh, and if you want to go crazy with this, toss in some fresh mozzarella at the end and sprinkle on some crispy pancetta... makes it really over the top.
Grilled Summer Ratatouille
Vegetable "Bolognese"
with fresh pasta
1 eggplant, sliced lengthwise
1 zucchini, sliced lengthwise
1 yellow pepper, seeded and quartered
3 tomatoes, thickly sliced
1/2 cup of olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, sliced
sea salt & pepper
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2 tablespoons of sea salt
1 pound of pappardelle pasta (homemade recipe here, or store-bought)
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1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes
fresh basil
fresh cherry tomatoes, halved
Combine 3 sliced cloves of garlic and 1/2 cup of olive oil in a small bowl. Brush the oil on all sides of the sliced vegetables. Reserve the remaining oil. Sprinkle each vegetable with sea salt and cracked pepper.
Grill the vegetables for 3-4 minutes on each side until good color has developed and the vegetables are tender. Remove the vegetables from the grill and bring them inside, let cool. Cut the vegetables into 1-inch pieces.
Meanwhile, boil a pot of water with 2 tablespoons of sea salt for the pasta.
In a large saute pan, add reserved olive oil with sliced garlic cloves. Cook for 30 seconds on medium high just until the garlic begins to bubble. Add the crushed red pepper flakes. Cook for 10-20 seconds longer, then add chopped vegetables and stir the mixture. The more tender vegetables like the eggplant and tomatoes will naturally break apart to create the sauce.
Cook the pasta in the salted, boiling water just until al dente. Add a 1/4 cup of pasta water to the sauce to thin it slightly. Add more, if needed. Remove it from the water and add it directly to the sauce, toss it with the pasta. Add fresh cherry tomato halves and fresh basil at the end or as a garnish.
These Grilled Summer Appetizers would perfect starters for this pasta.
For more recipes from my Heirloom Tomatoes Tasting Dinner Party, click here!
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