Fettucine with Eggplant and Capers in Tomato Sauce

Sometimes I just want pasta, don’t you?  Doesn’t matter how much I’m trying to be good about what I’m eating, every once in a while, the thought of al dente, delicious, semolina pasta just takes over my imagination and I must have it. When I got some gorgeous, local eggplant the other day, I could not stop thinking about making it into a delicious tomato sauce. I was going to put it over chicken, but I rebelled and bought fettucine instead.  So, here it is – wonderful Fettucine with Eggplant and Capers in Tomato Sauce.  It’s worth every carbohydrate.

• 2 lbs Fettucine or whatever you’re in the mood for
• 3 small eggplant, sliced into bit size pieces
• 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
• 3 large cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
• big pinch of red pepper flake
• 2 cans of diced tomatoes (Muir Glen has no BPAs!)
• 1 can tomato paste
• 1 jar of capers
• olive oil
• sea salt

People make far too much out of eggplant – salting, pressing, draining.  I don’t do any of that.  You don’t need to.  Just chop and start sauteeing.

Heat a dutch oven on med/high heat. Add about a tablespoon of olive oil.  When it’s hot, add the eggplant and saute for about 3-4 minutes.

Add the onion and a really big pinch of salt and continue to cook, stirring occasionally so that all the eggplant and all the onion have the opportunity to have a few minutes of heat on them.

When the onions are glossy and the eggplant is soft and slightly browned, add the garlic and the red pepper flake.

Cook and stir until it’s really fragrant.  At this point, everyone in your house will start to gravitate toward the kitchen.

Add the tomatoes and tomato paste and very gently start to stir so that the paste almost melts into the sauce. Add the capers when it’s combined.  Lower the heat and let it gently cook.

At this point, Cook your pasta in very salty water, ever so slightly less than you normally would.  The pasta is going to finish in the sauce.  Drain the pasta, put the big pot back on the stove on a low heat.  Carefully transfer the sauce to the big pot – start with a ladle, you definitely don’t want to get splashed.  But use a rubber spatula at the end, because you want every drop. Add the pasta back to the pot and very gently toss to combine. Cover and let it sit to finish the cooking process.  When the pasta is perfectly al dente, serve.

Seriously.  Worth. Every. Carb.  So delicious and rich and fragrant – and almost too easy!  Should serve eight.  Totally didn’t.

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