Rigatoni With Fresh Plum Tomato Food

RIGATONI WITH TOMATOES AND MOZZARELLA

Steps:

• In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until al dente, according to package instructions; drain.
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine tomatoes, vinegar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; set aside.
• In a small skillet, heat oil over low heat. Add garlic; cook, stirring often, until tender and just beginning to take on color, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in red-pepper flakes.
• Stir garlic mixture into reserved tomato mixture. Add parsley, oregano, mozzarella, and pasta; toss.

RIGATONI WITH FRESH TOMATOES AND BASIL

Steps:

• Heat oil in large skillet.
• Add garlic and fry until sizzling.
• Add tomatoes and basil and saute until tomatoes are tender. (about 5 minutes).
• Stir in salt and pepper.
• Add cheese cubes, stir quickly, and pour over pasta. (Cubes should be slightly melted but still retaining their shape).
• Serve and enjoy!

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.

FRESH PLUM TOMATO SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and brown for 3 to 4 minutes. Add tomatoes, salt, and sugar; cook for 15 minutes.
• Place a large bowl on a work surface. Insert a colander inside the bowl. Place cooked tomatoes in the colander to drain, saving excess liquid. Transfer tomatoes to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until blended to the desired consistency. Return tomatoes to the saucepan. Add basil and cook for 20 to 30 minutes more, adding some of the reserved tomato liquid if the sauce is too thick.

RIGATONI WITH SWEET TOMATOES, EGGPLANT AND MOZZARELLA

Steps:

• Remove both ends of the eggplant and slice it into ½ inch slices, then slice these across and finely dice into ½ inch cubes. Some people prefer to season their eggplant with salt and let it sit for a while in a colander to draw out the bitterness, but I don't really do this unless I'm dealing with a seedy, bitter eggplant. This dish is really best made using a firm silky one.
• Now put a large saucepan on the heat and drizzle in 4 to 5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. When it's hot, add the cubes of eggplant, and as soon as they hit the pan, stir them around with a spoon so they are delicately coated with the oil and not soaked on one side only. Cook for about 7 or 8 minutes on a medium heat. Then add the garlic and onion. When they have a little color, add the canned tomatoes and the balsamic vinegar. Stir around and season carefully with salt and pepper. At this point, if you wanted to give the dish a little heat you could add some chopped fresh or crumbled dried chilli, but that's up to you. Add the basil stalks, and simmer the sauce nice and gently for around 15 minutes, then add the cream.
• While the sauce is simmering, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and add the pasta. Cook according to the package instructions until it is soft but still holding its shape, then drain it, saving a little of the cooking water. I like to put the pasta back into the pot it was cooked in with a tiny bit of the cooking water and a drizzle of olive oil and move it around so it becomes almost dressed with the water and oil.
• At this point add the lovely tomato sauce to the pasta. By now the eggplant will have cooked into a creamy tomatoey pulp, which is just yum yum yum! (Jamie's words) Season carefully to taste with salt and pepper. Take the pan to the table, tear up the mozzarella and the fresh basil, and fold these in nicely for 30 seconds. Then very quickly serve into bowls. By the time your guests start to eat, the mozzarella will have started to melt and will be stringy and gorgeous and really milky-tasting. Just lovely with the tomatoes and eggplant. Serve at the table with a block of Parmesan cheese and a grater so that everyone can help themselves.

RIGATONI WITH FRESH CLAMS AND TOMATOES

Steps:

• place clams in large saucepan. add water and lemon juice, cover and cook over medium heat until shells open. discard any unopened shells.
• remove clams from shells, chop and set aside (do not throw out liquid).
• strain cooking liquid from clams through a sieve lined with a cheesecloth. set liquid aside.
• heat oil in a saute pan over medium heat. add shallots, onions and gralic, cook for 3 minutes over low heat.
• add tomatoes, tomato paste and seasonings, bring to a boil. reduce heat to low and cook 45 minutes. stir a few times during cooking.
• pour reserved cooking liquid from clams into small saucepan. cook 6 minutes over high heat.
• incorporate 1/2 cup of reduced cooking liquid into tomato sauce. continue cooking sauce for 15 more minutes over medium heat.
• place chopped clams in tomato sauce and mix well. simmer 3 minutes over low heat.
• add pasta to sauce, mix and serve.

RIGATONI WITH FRESH PLUM TOMATO

Steps:

• Cook your rigatoni as instructed on the package, or use left leftovers,
• Spray a wok or large skillet with cooking olive oil spray.
• Heat over medium heat , add the onions garlic, and red pepper flakes if using.
• Cook and stir one minute.
• Add the sliced zucchini, basil, oregano (or marjoram) salt and pepper.
• Cook and stir 2 to 3 minutes until zucchini is tender.
• Stir in the plum tomatoes and the cooked pasta.
• Heat thoroughly, But don't over cook.
• Place onto serving dishes and sprinkle with the crumbled cheese.