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Baked Rigatoni Topped with Fried Eggplant
Serves:8
Over the years I've sampled several versions of a baked pasta dish that featured layers of pasta and fried eggplant slices. The flavor of the eggplant blended with tomato and pasta was excellent, but the eggplant was always soggy. This version is no more complicated than the others, but adding the eggplant cubes during the final few minutes of baking keeps them crisp. Serve the pasta directly from the oven, scooping from the bottom so each serving is topped with some of the eggplant.

Click here for our recipe for Basic Tomato Sauce
Origin: Italian
Ingredients:

3 cups Basic Tomato Sauce
1 medium eggplant (about 12 ounces)
1/4 cup kosher salt
2 eggs
1 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/2 cup COLAVITA Extra Virgin Olive Oil, or as needed
1 pound COLAVITA bronze Die Roman Rigatoni, or Ziti
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese


Preparation:

1. Trim and peel the eggplant; cut into 3/4 inch cubes. Toss the eggplant with the salt in a large bowl and let stand, tossing occasionally, until the eggplant exudes about 3 tablespoons liquid, about 30 minutes. 2. Drain the eggplant in a colander and rinse thoroughly under cold running water. Squeeze the eggplant with your hands to remove as much liquid as possible; drain on paper towels. 3. Beat the eggs with a few drops of water in a mixing bowl until thoroughly blended. Add the eggplant and toss until coated. Turn the eggplant cubes into a colander and shake to remove the excess egg. Place the breadcrumbs in a second mixing bowl, add the egg-coated eggplant and toss with dry hands until the eggplant is coated with crumbs, pressing lightly to make sure they stick the eggplant. Transfer the cubes to a wire rack to set the coating. 4. Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium heat until a coated eggplant cube dropped in the oil gives off a lively sizzle. Add half the eggplant and fry, turning as necessary, until golden brown on all sides, about 2 minutes. Remove to paper towels with slotted spoon and repeat with the remaining eggplant. 6. Heat the oven to 450 degrees. 7.  Meanwhile, heat a large pot of generously salted water to boiling over high heat. Stir in the rigatoni and cook, stirring frequently, until the pasta is tender but firm, about 12 - 14 minutes after the water returns to a boil. 8. Reserve 1/2 cup of the boiling liquid, then drain the pasta in a colander, shaking to remove excess water. Return to the pot, add the tomato sauce and reserved cooking liquid. Heat over medium heat to simmering. 9.  Transfer to a 2 inch-deep 2 quart baking dish. Scatter the eggplant over the top and sprinkle with cheese. Bake until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes. Serve very hot.
Per Serving: 465 Calories (41.3% from fat); 21g Fat (4g Sat, 14g Mono, 2g Poly); 12g Protein; 56g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 30mg Cholesterol; 651mg Sodium.  Food Exchanges: 3 1/2 Grain (Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 3 Fat.