Pasta Alla Norma Recipe | ChefDeHome.com (2024)

Diet Info: DF GF F LF Na LS VG V Fa

Fresh eggplant always make me crave Pasta Alla Norma.Pasta All Norma is an eggplant and pasta dish featuring roasted or sauted eggplant, with a tomato basil sauce and fresh lite cheese. Today I'm sharing a weekday-approved Pasta All Norma with my Modern take on authentic recipe.My recipe is an every-day pasta bowl, simple and easy for weekdays.

This pasta bowl is also completevegetarian. (our special favorite on Meatless Mondays). I you like veggie-forward eggplant dishes and Pasta Alla Norma, you will also love my Eggplant Ratatouille, Baked Eggplant Parmesan and Eggplant Rollatini Recipes.

Traditional Pasta All Norma is roasted or sauted eggplant with tomato basil sauce, and shavings ricotta salata cheese with lots of basil. My recipe for Pasta all Norma showcases all these flavors but with quick and lite take.

Honestly, on weekdays, I like a pasta bowl which is easy to prepare, has bold flavors to keep my family happy. In my home, a Vegetarian bowl can make my carnivorous family happy only if it is singing with bold scrumptious flavors. (easy-to-prepare is pure hidden bonus for lazy-tired me). The fact that Vishal ate a bowl of pasta without meat means a victory. Cheery-on-top when I'm asked to include this in next week's menu.

Make-it Easy Pasta Alla Norma:

This recipe is weekday approved. I take help of some pantry and low-fat refrigerator staples to prepare an easy Pasta All Norma. Here is what I do:

1) I either grill or roast sliced eggplant for quick, low-oil yet meaty eggplant.
2) For tomato-basil sauce, I either make sauce over the weekend or use my favorite brand of tomato-basil sauce from pantry. This reduce the prep work to more than half.
3) Low-fat cottage cheese is one of our favorite breakfast cheese. It's always in my refrigerator and we love it's clean taste.So instead of buying a pack of ricotta salata just for this recipe. I always reach for low-fat creamy cottage cheese.

Note: You can also use homemade fresh ricotta for pasta alla norma. (I'm planning to share my recipe. But it will be a new post.)

4) I finish the pasta with basil pesto. Basil pesto is ready-to-use and adds such bold basil flavor to this eggplant-tomato pasta dish. It has nuts, parmesan, basil - all in one. I highly recommend using it. In-fact, if you have pesto, you can even skip fresh basil. I also have recipe for homemade Basil Pesto to try.

Pasta Alla Norma

5 (1 review)

Total Time: 30 mins Prep Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 20 mins Cuisine: Italian (Pasta, Main Course) Difficulty: Easy

Yields: 3-4 Servings - Serves: 4

(No. of servings depends on serving size.)

Ingredients

12 Oz Tomato Sauce (good quality tomato-basil sauce)

2 Egg Plant Or Brinjal (medium, firm, thin sliced lengthwsie)

2 Garlic (cloves, minced)

4 tbsp Olive Oil

1/4 tsp Chili Flakes

1 lbs Pasta (penne or farfalle )

1 Cup Cottage Cheese (or fresh low-fat ricotto cheese)

1/3 Cup Basil Pesto

2-3 tbsp Basil (fresh leaves, or parsley, for serving)

Directions

1.To cook pasta, bring a pot of water to rolling boil. Genrously seaspn with salt. Drop in pasta and cook until al-dente. Don't let pasta go mushy.
2.Pre-heat the grill. Or a cast iron pan. Coat eggplant slices with 1-2 tbsp oil. Massage well. Season with generous pinch or 2 of salt and black pepper. Grill until eggplant has nice grill marks, is cooked tender to your liking. (I grill 2-3 minute each side).
3.If used pan for grilling, after removing eggplant, wipe pan clean. Or use a fresh wide pan and a tbsp of oil. Add garlic and let perfume the oil for 30 seconds. Add tomato sauce with dried basil, chili flakes, and simmer sauce for 5 minutes (covered)
4.Mix in grilled eggplant. Add half of ricotta, all cooked pasta and mix in the sauce gently. Divide eggplant-pasta mix among 3-4 serving bowls (depending upon serving size you want). Top with layer of remaining cheese, and basil pesto (divide equally among bowls). Garnish with fresh basil/parsley and drizzle of olive oil (both optional) Serve and enjoy!

Savita's Notes:

Disclaimer: Slightly adapted from Eataly.com

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Pasta Alla Norma Recipe | ChefDeHome.com (2024)

FAQs

What is Pasta alla Norma made of? ›

Originally from Catania, a city on the eastern coast of Sicily, Pasta alla Norma is a delicious Sicilian pasta made with tender eggplant and tossed in a herby tomato sauce and a sprinkle of ricotta salata cheese. This eggplant pasta recipe makes a satisfying vegetarian dinner that even meat lovers enjoy!

What to pair with Pasta alla Norma? ›

Although this dish is easily a meal in itself, you could accompany it with a fresh rocket salad or Italian bean and olive salad. If catering for big appetites, a generous wedge of garlic bread or focaccia wouldn't go amiss, either.

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What Sicilian eggplant dish is often made with rigatoni? ›

Pasta alla Norma is a very simple but seriously tasty dish from the city of Catania in Sicily. It is usually made with pasta tubes such as rigatoni or penne rigate seasoned with tomato sauce and with the addition of fried eggplant, grated ricotta salata and basil.

What does Norma mean in Italian? ›

[ feminine ] /'nɔrma/ (regola) rule , regulation , standard. norma igienica sanitary regulation.

Why is pasta alla vodka so good? ›

Wine works, too, but a clean-tasting vodka has mostly water and ethanol (a solvent), which is excellent at carrying aromatic compounds — like those in tomatoes. In other words, the vodka in this dish can help you smell, and in turn taste, the sauce's flavors in a heightened way.

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In which part of Italy was the Pasta alla Norma invented? ›

Here, we take a deeper dive into the history of this intriguing dish. The story of Pasta alla Norma originates from Catania, a bustling port city on the east coast of Sicily, which is also the birthplace of the renowned 19th-century composer Vincenzo Bellini.

Keep Reading ›

Why does pasta alla vodka have vodka? ›

In a vodka sauce, the vodka helps maintain a cohesive texture, allowing the creaminess to meld with the tomato base. And sure, you could use wine to the same effect, but in a sauce as rich as vodka sauce, it's better to use a small amount of alcohol that will impart as little of its own flavor as possible.