Roasted Aubergine, Tomato and Goat Cheese Pasta

Over this summer I decided to take every Friday off work.  Not only does it enable me to feel smug on a Thursday but I also get to make the most of summer spread out over long weekends.  I love not having to spend my Friday evening stuck in traffic as all of London seems to be on the move for the weekend getaway.  It seems to me the three day weekend really should be introduced.  In fact it was Winston Churchill who as Prime Minister in the 1950s saw the potential in the four day working week for the future: “give the working man what he’s never had – four days’ work and then three days’ fun”.  How right he was and if only...

I’ve been making this pasta every summer for years.  My husband loathes aubergines so it’s usually a solo affair.  It works well as a weekend lunch or a quick week night dinner.  If I add chopped up sausages I can usually persuade my husband to eat it as long as I go light on the aubergine.  More for me.  If I’m feeling flush then I’ll use toasted pine nuts instead of the toasted almonds.  Olives are another nice addition.  It’s a hearty Mediterranean style dish perfect for warm summer days.

Recipe adapted from BBC GoodFood Serves 2

1 large aubergine cut in to chunks

200g cherry tomatoes cut in half

Handful of basil leaves chopped

Handful almond flakes toasted

1 garlic clove

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Hard goat cheese, grated

150g gluten free pasta

Preheat the oven Gas Mark 7, 220°C, 425°F

Place the aubergine chunks and whole garlic clove in a baking tray and drizzle with oil.  Cook for 20 minutes.  Remove from the oven, give everything a stir and add the cherry tomatoes to the pan.  Return to the oven for another 10-15 minutes.  Meanwhile cook your pasta according to the pack instructions.  When your veg is ready and your pasta is drained, remove the garlic from the pan, snip off the ends and squeeze the roasted garlic out on to a board.  Mash with a fork and return to the vegetable pan.  Add the pasta, basil and some of the goat cheese and mix everything together.  The pasta will mop up the lovely juices from the aubergines and tomatoes.  Serve in bowls sprinkled with flaked almonds and more goat cheese and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

*Churchill quote from the Guardian