Rigatoni with Peppers & Eggplant

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1 September 2021 BY Julie Biuso
SERVES: 4

A splash of colour is always an appetite-inducer. If you get the vegetables roasted ahead of time you will find this dish super-quick to put together.

Ingredients

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1 medium-sized eggplant (aubergine) 1 red and 1 yellow pepper (bell pepper / capsicum) Flaky sea salt plus coarse salt for cooking pasta Freshly ground black pepper ½ tsp dried oregano 2 Tbsp olive oil 12 medium vine tomatoes Caster (superfine granulated) Extra virgin olive oil 500g rigatoni Chilli flakes, optional Small handful basil leaves, or a little parsley Small piece of parmesan for shaving over pasta Handful small rocket (arugula) leaves 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

Method

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1 Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F). Trim eggplant and cut into large cubes. Halve peppers, remove cores, and seeds and chop into large chunks. Transfer to a shallow roasting tin, season with salt, pepper and oregano and drizzle with olive oil. Toss well. Roast for 45-60 minutes, stirring 2-3 times, or until eggplant is tender. Cool, then chop roughly.

Rigatoni with Peppers & Eggplant

2 Increase oven heat to 220°C (425°F). Line a shallow ovenproof tin (I use a Swiss roll tin / jellyroll pan) with baking (parchment) paper.Cut tomatoes in half and arrange in tin. Sprinkle with sea salt and sugar. Grind over a little black pepper and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Roast for 25-30 minutes until collapsing and charring around the edges. Cool. Scoop pulp from tomatoes and transfer to a bowl. Gather all the tomato skins and gently squeeze juices into bowl. Scrape any tomato juices off paper into bowl. The tomatoes and roasted vegetables can be cooked ahead; reheat briefly in a microwave, or in a covered dish in the oven.

3 Cook pasta in plenty of gently boiling, salted water until al dente. Drain and immediately tip into a large heated bowl. Toss through 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, chilli flakes to taste and tomato pulp. Add the chopped vegetables and toss again, adding in basil or parsley.

4 Dish immediately into heated pasta bowls, shave over a little parmesan, scatter with rocket and drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil (optional). Devour!

Recipe Notes

Roasting the vegetables ahead of time means this is quick to put together when you are under the pump at meal time.