Pasta alla Norma

1: Wash and cut eggplant vertically. Salt eggplant pieces generously and allow to sit for 30 minutes to draw out excess moisture. Once 30 minutes is up, wash eggplant and squeeze/strain tightly like a towel. Cut into cubes.

2: Boil salted pasta water.

3: In a deep pan on medium-high heat, heat ~1 cup of avocado oil to ~340 degrees. Fry eggplant until browned (~8 minutes). With a slotted spoon, remove eggplants and allow to soak onto a paper towel lined plate.

4: Cut tomatoes. In a large pan, heat olive oil on medium heat. Add whole garlic cloves and fresh basil. Add tomatoes with salt and pepper. Cook for ~5-7 minutes until tomatoes soften.

5: Add passata and cook for another 5 minutes. Add cooked eggplant and toss.

6: Cook pasta until al dente (~1 minute less than what the packaging says). Add pasta into tomato sauce with more fresh basil and toss. Add a bit of ricotta salata and mix. Enjoy!