Rach Pairs Giant Pasta With An Eggplant-Based Spiced Meat Sauce

Step 1

Arrange rack 1 rung down from top of oven and preheat oven to high

Step 2

Halve the eggplant lengthwise and brush with EVOO, season with salt and pepper and place cut side down on a baking sheet

Step 3

Broil eggplant 20 minutes until skin charred and flesh collapsing and tender

Step 4

The eggplant will look like flat tires

Step 5

Turn the eggplant over with tongs and with the back of your chef knife scrape the flesh away from the skins, slide into a bowl or dish and mash

Step 6

Meanwhile, heat a large pot of water to boil for pasta

Step 7

For sauce, heat a large deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium high heat with EVOO, 2 turns of the pan

Step 8

Add sausage and beef and brown and crumble, add garlic and season with fennel, allspice, cumin, salt and pepper

Step 9

Stir in sun dried tomato paste, 2 big squirts from a tube, when you can smell the paste and it's incorporated fully, add stock or water and tomatoes, reduce heat a bit and simmer at a bubble

Step 10

Cook pasta 1 minute less than directed in salted water

Step 11

Just before draining or transferring to sauce reserve ¾ cup of starchy cooking water

Step 12

Stir eggplant into meat sauce and combine with pasta and pasta cooking water and cheese, add parsley and toss a full minute then adjust salt and pepper, serve with additional cheese to pass at table