Pasta with the lot

By Jan Cheshire
 
WE HAVE had such an overabundance of vegetables this summer that it has been hard work finding recipes to deal with it all.  In particular, the tomatoes are still going strong, but so are the eggplants.  We only had a few last year, but this year they have gone crazy!!  This recipe uses all those vegetables and is particularly delicious into the bargain.  If you are not sure about the “vegetarianism” of this dish, you could always barbecue a couple of good steaks to go with it.

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BAKED RISONI PASTA WITH CHEESE & OREGANO
Serves 4
Ingredients
100 ml of olive oil
1 large eggplant, diced
4 carrots peeled and diced
4 celery stalks diced
1 onion diced
3 cloves of garlic crushed
250 grams of Risoni (a pasta that looks like large grains of rice and is available in most supermarkets)
1 teaspoon of tomato paste
380ml vegetable stock
Small handful of fresh oregano or thyme, chopped
The grated zest of 1 lemon
120 grams of grated mozzarella cheese(I buy it already grated)
40 grams of parmesan cheese, grated
3 medium tomatoes, sliced
1 teaspoon of dried oregano and salt and pepper to taste
 
Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200C
2. Cook the eggplant over medium heat for 8 minutes until golden brown.  Remove and drain on a paper towel.
3. Add carrots and celery to the pan and cook for 8 minutes and remove to a paper towel.
4. Add onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes.
5. Add the Risoni and tomato paste and cook a further 2 minutes.
6. Remove the pan from the heat and add stock, fresh oregano, lemon zest, cooked vegetables, mozzarella and parmesan and ½ teaspoon of black pepper
7. Mix well and put into a 21 x 27cm rectangular baking dish or 27cm diameter round dish. 
8. Arrange the tomatoes on top and sprinkle with the dried oregano, salt and black pepper.
9. Bake for 40 minutes until pasta is cooked through.  Remove, leave to settle for 5 minutes and serve.

 
Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from a recipe by Yotam Ottolenghi from his book “Plenty More”