Roasted Eggplant and Tomato Pasta with Marinated Mozzarella

This recipe came about based on what I had leftover in my refrigerator. It was a Saturday night and we had planned on going out to dinner; but we were both so tired we decided to stay in. So I hadn't planned for anything and basically just used what was around the kitchen. I had just seen one of Giada's shows where she made Pasta Ponza, which is where I got the roasting vegetables idea from, and I had some extra mozzarella I wanted to marinate so I used the technique in Shrimp and Brie Linguine.

Chuck and I really enjoyed this! He said the only change he would make to this is maybe to add some crumbled sausage so that there is a meat in it. I fully agree - I love using sausage in pasta and had been thinking that anyway, but didn't have any in the freezer. I hope you like this little concoction as much as we did!

Roasted Eggplant and Tomato Pasta with Marinated Mozzarella

from Colleen's kitchen

Makes 3-4 servings

olive oil

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

1/2 medium eggplant, diced

2 tablespoons capers, drained

kosher salt and coarse black pepper, to taste

4 ounces (or more) fresh mozzarella, cubed

2 tablespoons good quality extra virgin olive oil

chopped fresh basil, to taste

red pepper flakes, to taste

8 ounces spaghetti or linguine

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Coat the bottom of a glass 13 x 9 baking dish with olive oil. Add the tomatoes, eggplant, and capers to the prepared dish, drizzle with more olive oil and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until eggplant and tomatoes are tender, tossing 1 or 2 times. Remove from oven.

Meanwhile, toss mozzarella in small bowl with good quality olive oil. Add basil, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper to taste and let sit 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil and cook to al dente according to package directions.

Drain pasta and toss together with roasted vegetables and marinated mozzarella, adding more good quality olive oil if necessary. Top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese if desired.