- 2 aubergines
- 1 onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 400g chopped tomatoes
- A handful of basil, leaves only
- 75g gnocchetti pasta
- ½ x 250g ricotta
- Sea salt
- 2 tsp olive oil
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1.
Fill a pan with water. Add a pinch of salt, cover and bring to the boil.
- 2.
While the water heats up, trim the ends off the aubergines and chop the aubergines into chunks. Pour 2 tsp olive oil into a pan and warm to a medium high heat. Slide in the chopped aubergines and add a little salt and pepper. Fry for 8 mins, stirring occasionally, till golden on all sides.
- 3.
While the aubergines cook, peel and chop the onion. Peel and crush or finely chop the garlic.
- 4.
Slide the onion into the pan with the aubergines. Fry for a further 5 mins. adding a small splash of water if the veg start to stick. Sprinkle in the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 min.
- 5.
Pour the chopped tomatoes into the pan and stir to combine. Scatter in half the basil leaves. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 mins.
- 6.
When the sauce has cooked for 5 mins, the water in the other pan should be boiling. Pour the gnocchetti into the boiling water. Simmer for 8-10 mins, till tender with a slight bite. When cooked, drain quickly and tip the pasta into the tomato sauce.
- 7.
Add half the pot of ricotta and stir well. Spoon the pasta and sauce onto warm plates and serve with torn basil leaves on top.
- Tip
Wotta lotta ricotta
You only need half of the tub of ricotta for this recipe, so keep the rest in your fridge. It will keep for a few days and is delicious mixed with finely chopped herbs, lemon zest and spooned onto baked sweet potatoes.