Italian Eggplant Caponata Pasta with capers Recipe
Simple and easy but very tasty pasta with eggplant, tomatoes and capers from our neighboring Sicily. A delicious dish that we can enjoy as a main meal or as an accompaniment to our roasts, together with a glass of white or rosé wine.
Ingredients
- 500 grams penne rigate or other short pasta (pasta screws, shells, etc.)
- 3 pcs eggplants cut into 2 cm cubes
- 700 grams ripe tomatoes grated without seeds
- 3 tbsp capers rinsed and well drained
- 1 piece dried onion cut into dice
- 1 clove garlic mashed
- 100 ml olive oil and a little more for the eggplants
- 50 ml apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp sweet paprika
- 2 tbsp parsley finely chopped, just the leaves
- 2 tbsp petimezi or 1 tsp. sugar
- salt
- pepper
For the sprinkling:
- 50 grams pecorino cheese (from Amphilohia) or Parmesan
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F)
- On an oven tray, lay out non-stick paper and arrange the diced eggplants. Drizzle with a little olive oil to prevent them from burning and bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. When ready, set them aside until ready to use.
- In a sauté pan, once slightly hot, add the olive oil and sauté the onion and garlic for 3 minutes until golden brown.
- Meanwhile, in a deep pot with plenty of salted boiling water, boil the penne pasta all dente.
- Add the tomatoes, vinegar, petimezi, sweet paprika, salt and pepper to the pot with the onion and cook for 10 minutes until the tomato sauce thickens slightly.
- Then add the capers ,eggplants and parsley and gently stir the sauce with a wooden spoon.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the cooked penne and add them to the sauce with the eggplant and capers. Add some of the water from the water you boiled the pasta in, stir and let the sauce and pasta thicken for a few minutes.
- Serve the Italian pasta caponata sprinkled with grated Amfilochia Pecorino cheese (or Parmesan) and accompanied with white or rosé wine.