Preparation time:
- 20mins
Cooking time:
- 25mins
Specialty:
- Dairy-free
- Gluten-free (optional)
- Pescatarian
This recipe is a play of different consistencies and flavors: the creamy eggplant puree and the smooth tomato sauce, the fried eggplant cubes and the roasted zucchini slices as well as the seared squids. In terms of aromas, the combination of tomatoes and eggplants is one of our favorites especially in pasta recipes. The squids perfectly complement with their seafood taste. The mint adds freshness and summer vibes! It's absolutely delicious!
Ingredients (2 Servings):
- 180g of Spaghetti
- 4 Squids
- 1 Chinese Eggplant (You can use 3 Eggplants)
- 2 Listada Eggplants
- 1 Zucchini
- 16 Cherry Tomatoes
- 2 Cloves of Garlic
- 1 Teaspoon of Raw Coconut Sugar
- Extra-virgin Olive Oil
- Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- Fresh Mint
- Sea Salt
Instructions:
- In a wok, simmer a clove of garlic with extra-virgin olive oil until it becomes golden. Cut the cherry tomatoes into halves and add them to the wok.
- Season with sea salt and black pepper. Once the cherry tomatoes are half cooked add 1 teaspoon of coconut sugar and keep stirring at medium heat until they are completely cooked and mashed. You can add the lid to speed up the cooking process.
- Blend the cherry tomatoes into a smooth creamy sauce.
- Roughly dice the Chinese eggplant into cubes. Add the cubes into a pan with some extra-virgin olive oil and a clove of garlic. Cook with the lid at medium heat until they become soft. Occasionally stir. It should take 10 minutes.
- Once cooked, add the eggplant cubes into the blender with extra-virgin olive oil, sea salt, black pepper and a few fresh mint leaves.
- Blend it until you obtain a fine and creamy puree. Adjust with sea salt, pepper and extra-virgin olive oil to your taste. You can store it in the fridge (cover with a layer of extra-virgin olive oil) for a 7-10 days.
- Finely slice the zucchini lengthwise and pan fry them with some extra-virgin olive oil in a non-stick pan. Roast them on both sides.
- Dice the 2 Listada eggplants (cut cubes the size of a thumb) and sprinkle salt on top of each cube in order to remove the excess water. Let it rest for 10 minutes.
- Heat 4 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil in a pan and fry the eggplant until they become golden brown (usually cook for 10 minutes).
- Once cooked, let the eggplant cubes rest on a paper towel to remove the excess oil.
- Clean the squids. Separate the bodies from the heads. Remove the bones in the bodies. Slice the bodies of the squids and leave the heads uncut.
- Pan fry the squids with some extra-virgin olive oil in a non-stick pan for a couple of minutes. Remove the squids from the pan.
- Boil water in a pot and once the water is boiling add 1 tablespoon of sea salt and then add the pasta. The pasta needs to cook for 3-4 mins less than the time recommended on the box as we will continue cooking the pasta in the pan.
- While the pasta is boiling add 2/3 tablespoons of the pasta water into the pan where you cooked the squids. The water will collect all the juices of the squids.
- Drain the pasta and add it to the pan. Continue to stir until the spaghetti has absorbed the squid juice. Turn off the fire.
- Add the eggplant puree to the pasta, drizzle some extra-virgin olive oil and mix all together.
- Plate the pasta and add some tomato sauce and the squids.
- Season with some fried eggplant cubes, pan fried zucchini and fresh mint.