{yummy} i bought an eggplant- now what?

whenever i head to my local trader joe's, i am always looking for different fruits and veggies to expand my culinary cuisine. one veggie i am always on the lookout for is eggplant. but here's the thing- every time i see eggplants, they have bruises and marks on it. now, per my martha stewart-esque knowledge, i know that eggplants should not have either of these. ever.

bad eggplant.

so when i stumbled upon the most absolutely perfect batch of eggplants, i almost did a happy dance in the veggie section of trader joe's. knowing the personality of the employees there, they would have joined in with me. therefore, i obstained, picked up 2 perfect specimens, and continued my shopping. but what shall i do with these vegetables? this was my conundrum. i know, i know. what a problem to have!

good eggplant.

i typically head to various online resources for recipes like pinterest or food network. however, i have an extensive collection of actual cookbooks! yes, long ago, people wrote their recipes in books and they were purchased for money. who knew.

i scoured some of my favorite recipe books and settled on my signed giada de laurentiis cookbook. if i could be any chef, it would be giada. pretty sure it's mainly because i want to be her. she seems to get to eat all the bad-for-you italian food and stay thin. she cooks and bakes with this zen aura that i don't even reach while attempting yoga. she lives on the beach. her husband works for anthropologie. i just want to be her. ha. and, in the few times i have met her, she's real. the last time i had the pleasure of conversing with her, she looked at my mom and i and said, 'omg, mother and daughter?! you remind me of my mom and i! i love it!' seriously- no celebrity bravado in that tiny body of hers. here's probably one of my worst pictures, but proof that i did meet her. so there. ;-)

the recipe i settled on seemed simple enough and i had all the ingredients on hand. so here we go.

penne with eggplant puree

1 medium eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes

• 1 pint cherry tomatoes
• 3 cloves garlic, whole
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts (optional*)
• 1 pound penne pasta
• 1/4 cup torn fresh mint leaves (optional*)
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan

*i'm labeling these as optional because i didn't have them, omitted them, and the dish turned out just fine.

preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

combine the eggplant, cherry tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes in a large bowl. 

spread the vegetables out in an even layer and roast in the oven until the vegetables are tender, about 35 minutes.

boil a large pot of water, add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 8 to 10 minutes. drain pasta, but reserve 1 1/2 cups of the cooking liquid.

transfer the roasted vegetables to a food processor (i put them in my blender), add the extra-virgin olive oil, and puree the vegetables.

transfer the pureed vegetables to the bowl with the pasta and add the parmesan. combine and add pasta water until you reach desired consistency of the sauce.

wahlah! a delish dish that's healthy, easy, and with all natural ingredients. enjoy!

xoxo Lauren