Baked Eggplant Pasta
Baked eggplant pasta with Diavolo sauce is spicy, nutty and incredibly delicious. This simple eggplant casserole is easy to assemble and bakes in 30 minutes for an easy weeknight meal that’s comforting and flavorful. It’s easy to customize this baked Rigatoni with Eggplant to include your favorite vegetables or use ingredients you have in your pantry.
Ingredients
- 1 lb rigatoni
- 1 medium eggplant cut into 1 inch pieces
- 4 tablespoons olive oil divided
- Salt & Pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic minced
- ½ medium yellow onion chopped
- 1 28 oz jar Diavolo sauce
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasonings
- ½ teaspoon red chili flakes
- 4-5 basil leaves torn
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
- 1 cup parmesan cheese grated
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking tray with parchment paper and keep it aside.
- Cook the rigatoni pasta according to the package instructions in salted water minus 2 minutes. Reserve 1 cup of pasta cooked water and drain the remaining water and keep the cooked pasta aside.
- Add the eggplant pieces along with the 3 tablespoons of olive oil, salt and pepper on the parchment paper. Massage the eggplants to coat the oil evenly. Roast the eggplants for 20-25 minutes flipping them halfway through.
- Heat a heavy bottom dutch oven on a medium flame with a tablespoon of olive oil. Add in the garlic and chopped onions. Cook until the onion turns translucent.
- Add in the diavolo sauce and cook for 5-7 minutes. Add in the spices; Italian seasonings, red chili flakes, salt and pepper. Allow the sauce to simmer for 2 more minutes and add the basil leaves.
- Reserve ¼ cup of sauce for later use and add the cooked pasta in sauce and if needed add the reserved water pasta water.
- Spread the reserved ¼ cup of sauce over a 9X13 casserole dish at the bottom. Add a layer of pasta over the sauce. Add in the half portion of roasted eggplant over the pasta layer followed by 1 cup of mozzarella cheese and ½ cup of parmesan cheese layer. Repeat the same again; remaining pasta, roasted eggplant layer, ending with the spread of remaining cheese.
- Bake them for 20-25 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly.
- Once done, garnish the dish with freshly chopped parsley and basil on top and serve.
Notes
- Chop the eggplant into similar-sized pieces for even cooking.
- Don’t over oil the eggplant before roasting. The eggplant will absorb a lot of oil, but 3 tablespoons are all you need.
- Cook the pasta 2 minutes less than usual so it is quite al dente. It will finish cooking while the dish bakes in the oven.
- Be sure to salt the pasta water heavily.
- Reserve some pasta water to help thin the sauce later in the recipe.
- Experiment with different pasta shapes such as macaroni or penne. A short pasta will have the best results.
- Reserve a bit of the sauce to coat the bottom of the baking dish.
- Add in cooked, shredded chicken or ground beef before baking if you want meat protein in the dish.
- Add more veggies if you desire, such as mushrooms, bell peppers, zucchini and olives.
- Experiment with different cheeses.
Nutrition
Calories: 577kcal | Carbohydrates: 71g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 44mg | Sodium: 1149mg | Potassium: 831mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 1146IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 427mg | Iron: 3mg
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