Grilled Eggplant Tomato Pasta Food

GRILLED EGGPLANT & TOMATO PASTA

Steps:

• Put a large pot of water on to boil. Preheat grill to medium-high.
• Toss tomatoes with 3 tablespoons oil, oregano, garlic, pepper, crushed red pepper and salt in a large bowl.
• Brush eggplant with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Grill, turning once, until tender and charred in spots, about 4 minutes per side. Let cool for 10 minutes. Chop into bite-size pieces and add to the tomatoes along with basil.
• Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain.
• Serve the tomato mixture on the pasta. Sprinkle with cheese.

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.

PASTA WITH GRILLED EGGPLANT SAUCE

Steps:

• Slice the eggplants horizontally one-half-inch thick. Dust the slices with salt, place in a colander over a bowl and set aside for 30 minutes.
• Light a barbecue or an oven broiler.
• After 30 minutes rinse the salted eggplant in cold water and pat dry on paper towels. Brush the eggplant slices with four tablespoons of the olive oil and grill or broil them, turning them once, until they are lightly browned.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta.
• While the water is coming to a boil, heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet. Add the onion and saute over medium heat until it turns golden, add the garlic and saute a few seconds longer. Chop the grilled eggplant and add it to the skillet. Remove from heat.
• Boil the pasta until it is al dente, about eight minutes. Drain it. Reheat the onion and eggplant mixture in the skillet and add the tomatoes. Mix. Add the pasta, mix again, fold in the basil and season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Serve at once with Parmesan cheese on the side.

SUMMER PASTA WITH GRILLED EGGPLANT SAUCE

Steps:

• Prepare a grill for high heat.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the lemon juice to the boiling water and cook the pasta according to the package directions for al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water, drain the pasta and return it to the pot; set aside.
• Pierce the eggplant a few times with a fork or knife. Place on the grill, cover and cook, turning every 8 to 10 minutes, until completely charred all over and the flesh is soft when pressed, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and let cool slightly for 10 minutes.
• While the eggplant cooks, prepare 2 sheets of foil, each 12-by-12-inches, and stack them together. Place the tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper in the center of the foil. Fold over 2 opposite sides of the foil then fold in the remaining sides to create a tight seal. When 15 minutes of cooking time remain for the eggplant, add the foil pack to the grill and cook until juices start to bubble out of the top (this means the tomatoes and garlic are sufficiently cooked without having to open the pack), 13 to 15 minutes.
• Remove the eggplant to a cutting board (keeping any juices that accumulated in the bowl) and squeeze gently to crack the skin and expose the flesh. Use a spoon to remove the flesh, transfer to the large bowl and mash lightly with the spoon or a potato masher (you should have about 1 cup of flesh); discard the skin. Stir in the ricotta and Pecorino Romano until smooth then pour into the pot with the pasta and mix until combined. Fold in the contents of the foil pack (including any juices that accumulated), the basil, parsley, lemon zest, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper; stir until combined, adding the reserved pasta water, 1 tablespoon at a time, to thin out the sauce if needed. Serve with more basil, parsley, Pecorino Romano and crushed red pepper flakes if using.

PENNE WITH GRILLED TOMATOES AND EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Prepare barbecue (medium heat). Spray both sides of eggplant slices and tomato halves with olive oil spray. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill eggplant slices until brown and tender and tomato halves until charred, turning occasionally, about 10 minutes for eggplant slices and about 7 minutes for tomato halves. Cool.
• Cut eggplant into 1/2-inch-wide strips. Cut tomatoes into 1-inch pieces.
• Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite. Drain pasta. Return pasta to same pot.
• Add eggplant, tomatoes, parsley, olive oil and garlic to pasta and toss to blend. Stir in grated cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature. (Can be prepared 2 hours ahead.)

GRILLED EGGPLANT STACKS

Steps:

• Mix all marinade ingredients together in a large container with a lid.
• Add eggplant and toss to coat.
• Marinade for 1-8 hours.
• Heat grill.
• When grill is hot place eggplant on the hot preheated grill. Grill about 10 minutes, turning once.
• Enjoy as is or.
• Top with cheese and tomato slices.
• You can drizzle with balsamic that has been reduce by half.
• garnish with herbs.

GRILLED EGGPLANT WITH RICOTTA AND TOMATO

Steps:

• Heat the grill to high.
• Brush the eggplant slices with some of the oil.
• Grill the eggplant slices on both sides until brown, then place them in the bottom of a lightly greased, small shallow baking pan that will fit under the grill, and set aside.
• Over a medium heat, add the rest of the oil to a small sauté pan (preferably non-stick), add the cherry tomatoes and garlic and sauté for a couple of minutes, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes begin to soften.
• While still stirring, add the capers and leave the pan over the heat for an additional minute.
• Remove the pan from the heat.
• Cover the eggplant slices with the tomato, garlic and capers, season to taste and spoon the ricotta over the tomatoes. (The amount of ricotta included in the ingredients may not completely cover the tomatoes; if you want to cover the tomatoes, use more ricotta.).
• Place the baking pan under the grill until the ricotta starts to bubble.
• Scatter the basil leaves over the top and serve.

GRILLED EGGPLANT WITH TOMATOES, BASIL, AND FETA

Steps:

• Generously season eggplant slices with salt. Place vertically in a colander, overlapping them. Let stand 30 minutes; rinse and pat dry.
• Preheat grill to medium-high. Liberally brush cut sides of eggplant with oil. Grill, turning once, until tender, about 4 minutes a side. Mix tomatoes, pine nuts, feta, red-pepper flakes, and oil; season with salt. Spoon over eggplant; top with basil.

GRILLED CHICKEN AND EGGPLANT WITH MOZZARELLA AND TOMATOES

Steps:

• Heat grill to high. Pound chicken with a mallet or small pan to an even 1/2-inch-thick. Season with salt and pepper; drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil.
• Toss eggplants with 3 tablespoons oil, season, and grill, flipping once, until charred in places and tender, about 4 minutes a side. Transfer to a bowl, cover, and let stand until fully softened, 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, grill chicken, flipping once, until cooked through and charred in places, about 3 minutes a side. Stir together olives, remaining 1/4 cup oil, herbs, and vinegar; season to taste.
• Arrange chicken, eggplants, tomatoes, and cheese on a platter or plates. Sprinkle with olive mixture and more herbs. Drizzle with oil and serve with grilled bread.

GRILLED EGGPLANT, TOMATO AND 2-CHEESE SANDWICHES

Steps:

• Wash and trim eggplant. Cut into 4 long slices and parboil in water to cover for 1 minute. Drain.
• Wash, trim and slice zucchini lengthwise into 4 slices.
• Prepare double-size stovetop grill and spray the slices on one side with pan spray. Arrange them on the grill sprayed side down, and grill on the stovetop grill for a couple of minutes. Spray and turn and grill a few more minutes, until tender.
• Slice crust from ends of the bread. Cut into 4 long slices.
• Coarsely grate the cheeses.
• Remove the zucchini from the grill; set aside.
• Mix the anchovy paste with the vinegar.
• Spread the eggplant slices on one side with anchovy mixture, then spray with pan spray and grill on stovetop over medium-high heat for a few minutes, until browned.
• Grill the bread on both sides.
• Chop the basil. Prepare and slice each tomato into 4 thick slices.
• Turn the eggplant and brush with vinegar-anchovy mixture, then spray with pan spray and grill a couple of minutes, until browned on the other side.
• Arrange the eggplant, mozzarella, zucchini, Parmigiano, tomatoes and basil on each of two slices. Season with pepper. Top with remaining bread and cut in half.