Spiralized Spicy Eggplant And Sausage Zucchini Pasta Food

BAKED RIGATONI WITH EGGPLANT AND SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat for the pasta. Get yourself a 9 by 13-inch glass or ceramic baking dish.
• Heat a 2 count 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 a generous 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 2 count of oil to the skillet, then your 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.
• By this time your pasta water will be boiling. Add the rigatoni, 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 degrees 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. Dust with the Parmigiano and drizzle with more 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.

PASTA WITH EGGPLANT AND ZUCCHINI

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a saucepan and add the garlic. Cook and stir without browning. Add the tomatoes, parsley, oregano, pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Stir to blend, bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile cut off the ends of the eggplant and peel. Cut it into 1-inch cubes.
• Cut the ends off the zucchini and slice into 1-inch thick slices.
• Heat the remaining olive oil in a large skillet. When the oil is very hot, add the eggplant, zucchini, salt and pepper. Cook, tossing, until nicely browned and tender. Add to the tomato sauce. Mix well and cook for 15 minutes.
• Drop the pasta into salted boiling water and cook to the desired degree of doneness. Drain and reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.
• Return the pasta to the pot, add the reserved cooking liquid, the vegetable and sauce mixture, basil and Parmesan cheese. Toss and serve hot.

ROASTED EGGPLANT AND ZUCCHINI SAUCE FOR PASTA

Steps:

• Position the oven racks so that they are evenly spaced. Preheat the oven to convection roast at 450°F. Cover a large, rimmed pan with foil and coat with nonstick spray.
• In a large bowl, combine the eggplant, zucchini, garlic, onion, and tomatoes and drizzle with the olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread the vegetables on the prepared pan and roast in the center or top of the oven until the vegetables are soft, about 15 minutes.
• With tongs, lift the skins off the tomatoes. Return the tomatoes to the pan with the vegetables and roast for 5 more minutes. Scoop the hot vegetables into a food processor or blender fitted with the steel blade. Process just until the vegetables are coarsely chopped and pour them into a serving bowl. You may need to do this in batches.
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package directions. Put the pasta into a serving bowl and top it with the vegetable sauce. Serve with the Parmesan.

EGGPLANT ZUCCHINI BOLOGNESE

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions. , In a large bowl, combine the eggplant, zucchini, squash, onion, oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Transfer to two 15x10x1-in. baking pans coated with cooking spray. Bake at 425° for 20-25 minutes or until tender. , Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in the tomato puree, Italian seasoning and brown sugar. , Drain pasta; stir in tomato mixture and roasted vegetables. Sprinkle with cheese.