PASTA WITH GRILLED VEGETABLES

PASTA WITH GRILLED VEGETABLES image

Yield 4 large portions

Number Of Ingredients 9

6 tablespoons olive oil
4-5 large cloves garlic
Two small firm eggplants, cut into one inch slices
Two red onions, sliced horizontally
4 red peppers [can use red or orange, also]
5 large tomatoes, sliced thick.
1 cup julienned basil
1 lb. rotelle
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Steps:

Blend olive oil and garlic in food processor. Salt eggplant slices and weight with plates so that they "sweat" out some of the bitterness. Slice peppers into large pieces and grill. When blackened, put in paper bag to steam. Grill sliced onion until blackened. Pat eggplant with paper towels to dry. Brush eggplant with some of the garlic oil and grill. Brush tomatoes lightly and grill. Add vinegar to the remaining olive oil. Cook pasta in salted water. Peel peppers and cut into bite sized pieces. Place in large serving or mixing bowl. Cut onions, eggplant and tomatoes into bite sized pieces and add to bowl. Tomato will be a bit "loose" and juices will run. Try to get as much of the liquids into the bowl as possible. When pasta is cooked al dente, drain and add to bowl. Add basil. Pour oil and vinegar over and toss everything together. Nothing about this recipe needs to be exact. For example, if there happens to be one beautiful large eggplant - use that instead of the two small ones. Leftovers are wonderful cold and even better brought to room temperature.