Baked Rigatoni With Sausage And Eggplant Pasta Stephy Food

BAKED RIGATONI WITH EGGPLANT AND SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat for the pasta.
• Oil a 9x13 pan with olive oil.
• Heat a 3 Tbsp of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
• Add the sausages and toss in the hot oil for 3 to 4 minutes, you want them nicely browned on the outside but still rare on the inside. Put the sausages in the baking dish.
• Turn the heat down to medium.
• Add 1/3 cup of oil to the skillet and get it hot. Add as many eggplant pieces as you can comfortably fit in a single layer and sprinkle well with salt. Cook, turning, for 7 to 8 minutes, until the eggplant is nice and browned, crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. Use a spatula to put the eggplant into the baking dish with the sausage. Cook the rest of the eggplant pieces, adding more oil to the pan, as needed, and putting the finished eggplant into the baking dish.
• Add another 3 Tbsp olive oil to the skillet, then the onion and garlic, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until translucent.
• Dump the whole can of tomatoes and their juices into a bowl and crush the tomatoes with your hands to break them up; add that to the pan with the basil and cook it down until pulpy and relatively thick. This will take about 15 minutes.
• Add the rigatoni to the boiling pasta water, give it a stir, and cook for 6 to 7 minutes, it should be slightly firm as it will cook further in the oven. Ladle out 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water and reserve; the drain the rigatoni.
• Preheat the oven to 450°F.
• Chop the sausages into nice big, bite-size chunky pieces and return the pieces to the baking dish. Add the tomato sauce, rigatoni, and the reserved pasta water.
• Break up half the mozzarella over the mixture, season with salt and pepper, and gently mix with your hands or a spatula until combined.
• Dust with the Parmigiano and drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 15 minutes.
• Spread the remaining mozzarella in an even layer over the top and continue to bake for another 10 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly.

BAKED RIGATONI WITH SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• For the topping: Add the ricotta, basil, and salt to a small bowl. Stir together with a rubber spatula. Set aside.
• For the pasta: Bring a large pot of water to boil. Season well with salt and cook the rigatoni for 5 minutes. Drain well, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water.
• Meanwhile, heat a large braiser or ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and sausage to the pan. Cook, stirring often and breaking apart the meat with the back of a spoon, until beginning to brown, about 7 minutes. Add the broccoli and garlic and cook to marry the flavors, about 3 minutes. Stir in the marinara and 1/4 teaspoon salt until fully combined. Add the pasta to the pan and sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese. Toss well to coat. Add the reserved pasta water to thin the sauce slightly.
• Dollop the ricotta cheese mixture evenly over the top. Nestle the ricotta mixture into the pasta and cover with some of the pasta. Sprinkle with the mozzarella and remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and bake until golden brown and bubbly, about 20 minutes. Allow to sit for 5 minutes before serving.

EGGPLANT, TOMATO AND MOZZARELLA PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season aggressively with salt. Add the rigatoni and cook 3 minutes less than the package directions. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water and drain.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Toss the eggplant and tomatoes with 3 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread on the baking sheet and roast until the eggplant is golden brown and tomatoes are tender, 25 to 30 minutes. (Leave the oven on.)
• Toss the rigatoni with the eggplant, tomatoes, about 1/4 cup pasta water and the marinara sauce in a large bowl. If it looks dry, add the remaining pasta water. Stir in 1 cup mozzarella.
• Spray a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray. Transfer the pasta to the baking dish and top with the remaining cup mozzarella and the Parmesan and drizzle with the remaining tablespoon olive oil. Bake until the cheese is melted and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. (Turn the broiler on at the end if you want the cheese to brown more.) Garnish with additional Parmesan and the chopped basil and serve.

BAKED RIGATONI WITH ROASTED EGGPLANT AND TOMATO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
• Prepare oven-dried tomatoes:
• Skin the tomatoes by placing them in boiling water for 30 seconds and then plunging them right away in ice water. This will help you remove the skin without cooking the tomatoes. Using a paring knife, peel the skin off the tomatoes and then cut them in 1/2 lengthwise. Place the tomatoes in a bowl, sprinkle with alt and add the thyme and 2 ounces of olive oil. Arrange the tomatoes with the thyme sprigs on a non-reactive baking pan. Leave enough space around the tomato halves so they don't touch, allowing air to circulate and dry them out. Put them in a 300 degree F oven to dry for 2 hours.
• Prepare the garlic:
• Place the garlic cloves in a small pot and cover with 2 cups of olive oil. Simmer very slowly for 40 minutes, until the garlic is soft. Remove them from the oil and set aside at room temperature.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Prepare the eggplant:
• Slice the eggplant into 1-inch rounds. Put them in a bowl and sprinkle generously with salt. Drizzle olive oil over them and toss. Arrange the rounds on a baking pan, leaving enough space between each slice so that they cook evenly. Bake until they are soft and slightly brown, about 30 minutes.
• Prepare the pasta:
• In a large pot, bring to a boil 4 quarts of salted water. Add the rigatoni and cook until "al dente" or even slightly undercooked, about 6 to 8 minutes. Since the pasta will be cooked in the oven, it's important not to overcook the pasta in the boiling water. Drain the pasta in a colander and toss with a little olive oil to prevent them from sticking. Set aside.
• Assemble and bake dish:
• Raise oven temperature to 425 degrees F.
• In a large bowl, combine the pasta, eggplant, tomato, garlic, scallion and basil and mix well. Add the ricotta and toss gently so that the ingredients are distributed among the pasta but that the ricotta is not completely mixed through. The idea here is to have distinct and differing flavors, so it is important that the ricotta be spread in roughly tablespoon size pieces. Season, if necessary, with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Transfer to a large greased earthenware or glass baking dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan and bake in the oven until the pasta is brown and crisp on top, about 10 to 15 minutes.

RIGATONI WITH ITALIAN EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a 3 quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic. Cook, stirring until softened, about 2 minutes. Add the eggplant and cook. Continue stirring until softened, about 3 more minutes.
• Add tomatoes, with liquid, breaking them up with the back of spoon. Stir in wine, tomato paste, sugar, oregano, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally.
• Bring large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Cook pasta until al dente; drain. Toss pasta with sauce in pan over medium heat for about 2 minutes. Serve on a large platter and top with grated Romano cheese.

SAUSAGE AND EGGPLANT FUSILLI

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta for about 8 minutes, or 2 minutes less than the package directions. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water.
• Meanwhile, toss the eggplant with 1 tablespoon salt in a colander; allow to sit for 5 minutes. Rinse with cold water, then squeeze out the excess moisture. Dry well on a paper towel-lined tray.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large straight-sided pan over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until cooked through and beginning to brown, about 6 minutes. Push the sausage off to one side, add the eggplant and cook without stirring for about 3 minutes. Stir together the eggplant and sausage and continue to cook, stirring often, until the eggplant is soft and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in the shallots and garlic; cook for another 2 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the reserved pasta water, scraping up any browned bits. Stir in the tomatoes and the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and simmer for about 8 minutes, stirring often and breaking up the tomatoes.
• Add the pasta to the sauce and sprinkle the Parmesan and provolone on the bare pasta. Using two wooden spoons, toss to combine until the cheese is melted and the sauce is creamy and coats the pasta.

BAKED RIGATONI AND SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.
• Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook sausage until brown on all sides.
• Remove from pan; slice into thin pieces.
• Return meat to pan; add onion and garlic.
• Cook until onion is tender; drain.
• Stir in hot pasta and ricotta cheese; blend well.
• Pour 1 cup spaghetti sauce on bottom of a 3-quart casserole dish.
• Spread one-third pasta mixture over sauce; cover with 1 cup spaghetti sauce.
• Sprinkle 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese and 1 Tablespoon Parmesan cheese over sauce.
• Repeat layers of pasta mixture, sauce, and cheeses twice, ending with Parmesan Cheese.
• Cover, bake at 400 degrees F.
• for 20 to 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

BAKED RIGATONI & SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Cook rigatoni according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, cook sausage over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Add spaghetti sauce and wine., Drain rigatoni; add to sausage mixture and toss to coat. Transfer to a greased 13x9-in. baking dish; sprinkle with cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 15-20 minutes or until cheese is melted. Freeze option: Freeze individual portions of cooled pasta mixture in freezer containers. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Heat through in a saucepan, stirring occasionally and adding a little spaghetti sauce if necessary.

RIGATONI SAUSAGE BAKE

Steps:

• Slit the sausages and remove them from their skins, then chop them into small pieces. Heat the oil in a pan, add the onion and fry for 5 minutes, until softened and lightly browned. Stir in the sausages and fry until lightly coloured. Add the carrot, then stir in the wine, stock, tomato purée, and season.
• Bring to the boil, then simmer uncovered for about 15 minutes until thickened. Taste and season. Set aside.
• Put the butter, flour and milk in a pan. Gently heat, whisking, until thickened and smooth. Add a sprinkle of freshly grated nutmeg, season, then simmer for 2 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 190C/Gas 5/fan 170C. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Add the pasta, stir well, then cook, uncovered, for 10-12 minutes, until tender. Remove from the heat, stir in the spinach and, when just wilted, drain well.
• Tip half the pasta into a shallow ovenproof dish, about 2.2 litre/4 pint, and level. Spoon over the sausage sauce, then cover with the remaining pasta. Pour the white sauce evenly over the top and sprinkle with the cheddar. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Leave for 5 minutes before serving.