#DineWithFederica

Hello everyone!

My best friend turned 30 over the weekend, and I decided to surprise her by coming to her party in Palermo šŸ„°Ā Ā 

While I was in Palermo, I asked my grandmother to cook for me one of my favourite dishes:Ā pasta alla norma.Ā Who knew that I would be writing a blog post about it during my back flight to Dublin?!Ā 

It is typical Sicilian pasta that reminds me of my childhood summer that I used to spend with my relatives in our sea house. ā˜ŗļøThose months of holidays were really packed with activities: morning at the beach, lunch at home, a quick nap, and a play date with friends until my mom came home from work (good times šŸ˜‚). Ā For lunch, myĀ grandmother used to make meĀ pasta alla norma, which I ate sitting on a low wall on the patio. I loved that moment, and I’m sure you will love this delicious pasta šŸ˜Š

Ingredients:

  • Aubergines
  • Sunflower and olive oil 
  • Pasta 
  • Tomato sauce 
  • Grated cheese (we use a typical cheese named ricotta salata, but it is possible to use parmigiano as well)
  • Basil 

Method

Step 1:Ā Rinse the aubergine and pat dry with kitchen paper. Then, chop themĀ into cubes of small sizes.

Step 2: Drizzle a splash of sunflower oil into a large frying pan and heat it. Once hot, add the aubergines in a single layer and fry until softened and golden -stirring occasionally.

Step 3: Place the fried aubergine in a single layer on a kitchen towel to drain the oil. In this way, the aubergine will be crunchy. šŸ˜‹

Step 4: Add a splash of olive oil to a pan or pot, and when the oil is warm, add the tomato sauce. Add the salt and leave to cook on low heat for a few minutes.

Step 5: Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a pot of boiling salted water until “al dente”, which means that it should be soft enough to eat but still have a bit of bite and firmness to it.

Step 6: Drain the pasta and place it again in the pot. Then, add the tomato sauce and the aubergine and toss well.

Step 7: Ā Divide between bowls, grate over the cheese and finish with theĀ basil scattered on top.

The last image is from the Internet, as I was too hungry and I forgot to take a pic šŸ™„

Buon appetito!Ā (means enjoy šŸ˜‹)

Written by Federica Cottone