Recipe for Paccheri alla Norma

Wash and dry the eggplants, then cut off the ends. Slice them into rounds about 4 or 5 mm thick. Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle them with a bit of salt, drizzle with 2 or 3 tablespoons of olive oil, toss them around, and bake for 30 to 40 minutes. Stir them halfway through cooking (oven cooking in a reasonable amount of oil, and not frying in a deep oil bath, requires less effort for a perfectly satisfactory result).

Meanwhile, peel, sprout, and chop the garlic. Keep one chopped clove for the end. Wash and peel the tomatoes (or blanch them to remove the skin) with a peeler. Cut them into eight pieces. Place 2 tablespoons of oil in a pot and lightly sauté the garlic before adding the chopped tomatoes. Season with salt, pepper, add thyme, rosemary, and a little oregano. Mix and let it cook on low heat for a quarter to twenty minutes, stirring occasionally until the sauce is thick enough.

Cook the pasta meanwhile: 14 minutes for the large pasta (these are quite thick, hence this duration). Chop the basil leaves and mix in the reserved chopped garlic. Grate the cheese with a large hole grater. Note: the aged ricotta is dry and has nothing to do with fresh ricotta. You can replace it with mild pecorino, smoked cheese, or, like me, with aged sheep's cheese.

Mix the eggplants with the tomatoes and combine everything in the pot over low heat.

Drain the pasta, leaving a spoonful of water, and pour everything into the pot. Mix.

To finish, at the last moment, sprinkle with fresh basil and garlic. Distribute onto plates and top with grated cheese. Serve.