Pasta alla Norma

Pasta alla Norma is pasta tossed with fresh tomato sauce, flavorful eggplant and Italian salty cheese. This dish originated in the city of Catania in Sicily, the home of the famous Italian composer Vincenzo Bellini. Although there are conflicting stories exactly how the dish was named and by who, most believe it was in honor of Bellini and his famous opera “Le Norma” composed in 1831.

The dish is actually quite simple yet surprisingly deliciously. Pasta is tossed with fresh tomato sauce, seared eggplant and shredded ricotta salata cheese just before serving. Individual flavors are retained and complimented when combined.

The fresh sauce is usually traditional, made with olive oil, garlic, onion, fresh peeled or good quality canned tomatoes from Italy, and plenty of fresh basil. My recipe replaces garlic and olive oil with Peter's Garlic Oil; olive oil infused with pot roasted garlic, Tuscany seasoning and a hint of red pepper flakes. It adds terrific complex flavors to the sauce while seasoning the eggplant.

Preparation of the eggplant is important. It is peeled and thick sliced lengthwise. The eggplant is then "sweated" with salt to release its dark bitter liquid.

If electing to cook the eggplant by sautéing, lightly coat the pan with oil from Peter's Garlic Oil. 

If oven baking, liberally brush slices with the seasoned olive oil and place on cookie sheets. Brush with enough additional flavored oil to keep the eggplant from drying out. Either way, be careful to remove the eggplant as soon as the slices are cooked through. Please don’t overcook.

However, my very favorite way is to liberally brush the eggplant with the seasoned oil and grill both sides. Once lightly browned and grill marks appear, brush again with more garlic oil. Lower heat and place eggplant on a sheet of aluminum foil on the grates for final cooking. Grilling really intensifies the flavor of the eggplant.

Ricotta Salata is salted cheese made from the whey of sheep’s milk. It is the cheese most associated with this dish. Our family was partial to Pecorino Romano, another salty cheese.