Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Rigatoni With Eggplant And Dried Tomato Pesto

This is one of my favorite pasta dishes. With crumbled goat cheese or feta cheese it is one of the best meals you will ever eat. Have it with a tossed salad and Cheddar Bay Biscuits for a delicious meal you or your family or friends won't soon forget.

Rigatoni With Eggplant And Dried Tomato Pesto Ingredients

1. One Medium Sweet Onion.

2. One Tablespoon Olive Oil.

3. One Medium Eggplant

4. One Tablespoon Olive Oil.

5. Six Ounces Rigatoni Or Other Short Pasta Like Penne Or Rotini

One Third Of The Recipe Of Dried Tomato Recipe From Below.

One Teaspoon Black Pepper.

Two Tablespoons Semisoft Goat Cheese Or Feta Cheese. 1. Dice the onion very small and roast it in a 13" X 9" X 2" baking pan in a tablespoon of the olive oil. Roast in a 425 degree oven for 10 minutes.

Cut the stem end off your egg plant and discard. Cut your eggplant in half length wise. Brush with a tablespoon of olive oil. Stir your onion in the pan and place the eggplant in the pan cut side down. Continue cooking for 15 minutes more or until the onion is golden in color and the egg plant is just tender.

While the onion and eggplant are cooking cook your pasta according to the package directions. Toss your pasta with dried tomato pesto and pepper.

Transfer your pasta to a serving bowl and keep warm. Put your eggplant onto a cutting board. Use a knife to cut the eggplant into 1/2 inch thick slices. Now you want to toss your egg plant and onion with pasta. Season to taste with salt.

Sprinkle the completed dish with crumbled goat cheese or feta cheese and chopped Italian Parsley.

Dried Tomato Pesto Recipe

Ingredients

Three Fourths Cup Oil Packed Dried Tomatoes.

Olive Oil.

One Tablespoon Fresh Minced Garlic.

One Fourth Cup Pine Nuts.

One Fourth Cup Fresh Chopped Basil.

One Teaspoon Salt.

Drain the tomatoes and reserve the oil. Add olive oil to the reserved oil to equal one half cup.

In a food processor with your metal blade combine your tomatoes, garlic, pine nuts, basil, and salt.

Put the cover on and blend or process until finely chopped.

With the machine running, gradually add the half cup of oil processing until very smooth. Be sure to stop every so often and scrape down the sides. You can keep this tomato pesto in the refrigerator for up to a month and it's delicious.