Ziti, Baked with Eggplant

By Golfwidow7

Ingredients

• For the Eggplant:
• 1 Eggplant
• 1 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper
• For the Marinara Sauce:
• 1 Onion (diced)
• 2 cloves Garlic (minced)
• 3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper
• 2 28-oz can San Marzano Whole Tomatoes (crushed)
• Fresh Basil
• For Assembly:
• 1 pound Ziti
• 1 pound Mozzarella (cut into 1/2-inch cubes)
• Pecorino Romano

Details

Servings 4
Preparation time 60mins
Cooking time 120mins
Adapted from allrecipes.com

Preparation

Step 1

For the Eggplant: Preheat the oil to 350F.

Cut the eggplant into rounds about 1/2-inch-thick dice. Saute in olive oil until golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes.

For the Marinara Sauce: In a Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 90 seconds. Add the crushed tomatoes and season generously with salt and pepper. Cook and reduce slightly for about a half hour. Top with fresh basil.

For the Assembly: Preheat oven to 350F.

Cook the ziti to half of the time on the package instructions.

In a bowl, toss together the ziti, mozzarella, and half of the marinara sauce.

On the bottom of a casserole, create a bed of the eggplant. Grate pecorino over the eggplant and then top with half of the sauced ziti mixture. Grate more pecorino over the ziti mixture, then cover with another layer of the eggplant rounds. Add the remaining sauced ziti mixture. Cover with the remaining sauce and grate pecorino generously over the top.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, until golden brown and melted.