Roasted Summer Vegetable Pasta

I saw this recipe in the recent issue of Real Simple magazine and tried it out for dinner last night.

It was a hit. Definitely a keeper.

My husband is the kind of guy who likes to have meat with every meal and even he really liked it and didn't even mention the lack of meat. With the eggplant and pasta it is a satisfying meal. You could always add meat to it if you wanted. Chicken would taste good with it.

Eggplant has never been a favorite of mine but in this recipe I just love it!

I added mushrooms and used a different pasta. That's the great thing about it. It is simple and you can use what ever veggies and pasta you may have.

The Parmesan cheese on top added a nice flavor.

Roasted Summer Vegetable Pasta

Ingredients

• 3/4  pound  spaghetti
• 1  medium eggplant, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
• 1  medium onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1  yellow bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 8  cloves garlic
• 1/2  cup  olive oil
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1  pound  cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered if large
• 1/4  cup  fresh oregano leaves
• grated Parmesan, for serving

Directions

1. Heat oven to 450° F. Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Reserve ½ cup of the cooking water; drain the pasta and return it to the pot.
2. Meanwhile, on 2 rimmed baking sheets, toss the eggplant, onion, bell pepper, and garlic with the oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon black pepper. Roast, rotating the sheets halfway through, until the vegetables are golden brown and very tender, 15 to 18 minutes.
3. Add the vegetables, tomatoes, and reserved cooking water to the pasta and cook over medium heat, tossing, until the liquid coats the pasta, 2 to 4 minutes. Add the oregano and toss to combine. Sprinkle with the Parmesan.

By Dawn Perry ,  July, 2012