Eggplant Ragu Pasta

Method

• 1)

  Preheat oven to 180C.

• 2)

  Cut eggplants into 1cm thick discs and lay out onto baking trays with baking paper.

• 3)

  Sprinkle some salt over eggplants and lightly coat in olive oil. Then place into the oven at 180C for 30 mins.

• 4)

  Finely dice 1 brown onion, 1 carrot and stalks of celery.

• 5)

  Pick leaves of rosemary and thyme off and finely chop.

• 6)

  Finely chop the 3 garlic cloves and add the zest of 1 lemon to the chopping board too.

• 7)

  Place pot with water for pasta on high heat to bring water to the boil. Once to the boil add a pinch of salt and your 500g of San Remo large shells and cook as per packet instructions. Once it’s finished cooking, strain and run over with some cold water to stop it from cooking, to wait for ragu to be ready.

• 8)

  Place other pot on low to medium heat on the stove and add in a generous amount of olive oil (approx. 3-4 tablespoons).

• 9)

  Add onions in to start sweating down for 1 min, then add the carrots and celery.

• 10)

  After approx. 7 mins (the veg should be softening up), add in lemon zest, rosemary, thyme and garlic and stir through.

• 11)

  Add in 400g of tomatoes to pot and IL of vegetable stock and stir through.

• 12)

  Once eggplant has finished roasting, add into the pot then bring pot up to a high heat. (Intermittently stir your eggplant and you will see that it starts to cook down and break apart).

• 13)

  After 50 mins to 1 hr 10 (when its turned into a broken down eggplant ragu sauce and the liquid has reduced), remove from the heat.

• 14)

  Pour your sauce over the pasta (this will heat the pasta up enough) and stir through.

• 15)

  Serve on a platter, give a squeeze of lemon, place a ball of burrata in the middle and top with some basil leaves.