Wait… don’t run away reading the title of this recipe! It is one of the tastiest pastas you will ever eat! On our trip to Albania, we ate a popular East European dish called imam bayildi. It deep fried and stuffed eggplant cooked in a tomato based gravy. I fell in love with the complex flavors of this dish using the bare minimal ingredients. Good quality olive oil is the secret to making a really good imam bayildi.  I used imam bayildi as a base pasta sauce and topped it with some local parmesan! Try it and you can thank me later! 

What you will need:

How to make it:

• Chop the garlic, onions and tomatoes.
• In a sauce pan, add half the olive oil and let it heat. If you do not have olive oil, use any other oil of your choice.
• Add the garlic and onions. Saute till the onions are translucent. You do not want them to be overly cooked because you want that crunchy texture from them. Add the tomatoes and cook till they soften.
• Next, add the cumin powder, turmeric powder, chili/paprika powder, and salt to taste. Saute for 2 minutes and set aside. Add salt to taste. 
• In another pan, add the remaining oil and saute the chopped eggplants until they soften. Add salt to taste. 
• Mix the eggplant once it is done, with the onion, tomato mixture. Your sauce is ready.
• In a pan, bring water with salt to a boil. Tip: The water should taste like sea water to be perfectly salted. Add the pasta once the water comes to a boil and cook until al dente. Drain the pasta and set it aside. 
• For serving, place the pasta on the dish and top with the eggplant sauce. 
• Add parsley and parmesan cheese for garnish. 
• Enjoy!!