Ratatouille Pasta with Pine Nuts

The flavors of ratatouille work so well over some al dente pasta. Here's what I did.

Ratatouille Pasta

serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 medium sized onion, diced
• 1 medium sized eggplant, diced
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• handful of pine nuts, toasted
• 1 Tbs. tomato paste
• splash of balsamic vinegar
• small can of diced tomatoes
• olive oil
• salt and pepper
• red pepper flake
• pasta of your choice

Directions

Heat olive oil over a medium flame, add onion, and saute for a few minutes, then add eggplant and red pepper. Saute for 10-15 minutes until softened. Add minced garlic, red pepper flake, saute for a minute. Add balsamic vinegar, tomato paste, saute for another minute. Add canned tomatoes and salt and pepper. Cook down until eggplant has completely cooked through (about ten more minutes). In the meantime cook pasta. Once cooked, drain, and combine the sauce with the pasta and add the toasted pine nuts, reserving a couple for garnish. Serve immediately.

Fall Roasted Squash Soup

To celebrate the first day of fall I made a roasted squash soup. We had three different squashes, all of medium size that I halved, rubbed with olive and salt and placed in the oven at 375 for 45-60 minutes. I had a butternut, winter, and an acorn. Once they were roasting, I sauteed 2 medium onions in olive oil until they were nearly falling apart, then added minced garlic (3 big cloves), a teaspoon of tomato paste, and let those cook for a few minutes. I deglazed the pan with some cognac and then added vegetable stock.

Once the squash were roasted I scooped the flesh into the soup pot, added additional stock and seasoned to taste. I served with some crusty bread and a green salad. Enjoy!