This recipe has everything I relate with a comfort meal – Pasta, Lentils, Tomatoes, Eggplant and Cheese ! To add to the nutrition in this dish, I switched my regular pasta with Lentil pasta and made my lunch a protein rich, flavor packed bowl. So, lets get our Monday started with some Cheesy Tomato Eggplant Lentil Pasta
Pasta are comforting in every sense. Whatever flavor route you take, pastas never disappoint and always bring out the better in a dish. For me, pastas make an entry into my lunch, dinner and sometimes… even breakfast ! Today’s dish happened to be an “impromptu” one and i was so pleased with the result that i had to share it with you all 🙂
This past weekend went in a jiffy and with some friends coming over for a weekend dinner and some boring chores, i did not get any time to do my weekend meal preps for this week’s tiffins. So when i got up today, i realized i had nothing planned and had just about half an hour to pack some lunch. I quickly raided my refrigerator hoping to find some leftovers but soon realized that me and hubby had been eating leftovers the entire weekend and it had to end sometime 😛 Soon enough, my eyes fell on the pack of Modern Table’s Lentil Pasta and i knew it was time to get creative with some pasta !
This is not the first time i am using Lentil pasta and i say this every time.. i love it ! These pastas are made with lentils, making them heartier and they taste pretty much like the usual pasta. Plus they make your meals protein rich ! To me, that’s a win win. Today’s dish uses Ragu sauces, lentil pasta, eggplants and a new found love “Gochujang sauce” !
Creamy Tomato Eggplant Lentil Pasta
Creamy Tomato Eggplant Lentil Pasta
Ingredients
- 5 oz of Lentil Pasta (I used Modern Table’s mixed lentil penne)
- 2 cups eggplants (diced into cubes)
- 1 tablespoon Oil
- 1 cup Ragu’s Homestyle Thick & Hearty Roasted Garlic Sauce (use any you like or any brand )
- 2 tablespoons Ragu’s Creamy Tomato sauce (can substitute this with 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese )
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon Gochujang sauce (or more if you like spicy food)
- 1 tablespoon of basil, chiffonade
- Parmesan to Garnish
Method
- Take a pan and heat the oil. Once hot, add in the eggplant and saute for 5-7 minutes on medium high flame or till the eggplants are soft and cooked.
- In a separate pan, heat the sauces together and bring to boil . Add in the salt, black pepper and gochujang sauce. Mix well. Adjust the spices as needed. Add in the cooked eggplants and combine. Keep aside.
- Next, boil the pasta as per instructions given on the pack and drain the excess water.
- Add the boiled lentil pasta to the eggplant tomato sauce and gently combine. Sprinkle basil and Parmesan on top and serve warm.
This dish is D.E.L.I.C.I.O.U.S !! It is creamy, cheesy an has all sorts of flavors which will play with your taste buds. The Gochujang is definitely a surprise addition to this recipe and it transforms the dish and makes it amazing. If you love Sriracha, you should try out gochujang out. It is a fermented Korean chili paste and though the rest of the recipe leans towards Italian flavors, this sauce makes for an excellent fusion ! Give this recipe a go on a busy week day and enjoy this comforting bowl of pasta !!
