A quick and easy eggplant pasta topped with fresh basil and plenty of cheese! Yum! Pasta alla Norma is a Sicilian pasta dish with fried eggplant (aka aubergine) in a tomato sauce with basil and ricotta salata. The star of the show is of course the eggplant which is fried or sautéed in olive oil golden brown and tender. The tomato sauce is really easy to make starting out with a box of Pomì organic chopped tomatoes to which garlic and red pepper flakes are added.

Everything is finished off with fresh basil and crumbled ricotta salata where ricotta salata is a pressed, salted, dried, and aged version of ricotta. It can sometimes be difficult to find ricotta salata and a good substitute is the combination of feta and parmesan, which taste amazing and are easier to find. This tasty eggplant pasta dish comes together in less than 30 minutes making it perfect for quick and easy meals!

1. Start cooking the pasta as directed.
2. Meanwhile, heat 4 tablespoons of oil in a heavy bottom skillet over medium heat, add the eggplant and cook until lightly golden brown on all sides and tender, about 2-3 minutes per side, before setting aside.
3. Heat the remaining oil in the same pan, add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about a minute.
4. Add Pomì Organic Chopped Tomatoes, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for a minute before seasoning with salt and pepper to taste and mixing in the eggplant.
5. Divide the cooked pasta between 4 dishes, top with the eggplant sauce, the cheeses and fresh basil and enjoy!

Note: one medium eggplant is about 4 cups diced.

Option*: If you can find ricotta salata, use 1/2 cup of ricotta salata instead of the feta and parmesan.

Option: Serve with a tablespoon basil pesto!

Recipe by Kevin Lynch of closetcooking.com