Dinner · 45 min · italian

Pasta alla Norma

This is the kind of Italian dinner you’ll make on repeat — rigatoni and eggplant, 45 minutes, big payoff. At 620 calories and 20g protein per serving, it fits easily into a high-protein day. Leftovers keep well, so it doubles as next-day lunch without any extra work.

Ingredients

• 1 lb Rigatoni
• 1.5 lb Eggplant
• 2 cups Crushed tomatoes
• 3 cloves Garlic
• 3/4 cup Fresh basil
• 1 cup Ricotta salata
• 1/3 cup Olive oil

Steps

1. Cube the eggplant, salt it generously, and rest 30 minutes in a colander. The salt draws out bitterness and keeps the cubes from drinking half your oil.
2. Rinse, squeeze dry, and fry the eggplant in hot olive oil in batches until golden on all sides. Drain on a rack — crisp edges are the goal.
3. Soften the sliced garlic in a little oil until pale gold, add the tomatoes, and simmer 15 minutes into a simple, bright sauce.
4. Boil the rigatoni until al dente and toss it through the sauce with a splash of pasta water.
5. Fold in the fried eggplant and torn basil off the heat.
6. Serve with the ricotta salata grated thickly over each bowl — its salty crumble is the finishing signature of the dish.

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