Baked Pasta with Vegetables

Baked pasta with vegetables is a flavorful and colorful dish, perfect to enjoy in all seasons. You can vary the choice of vegetables according to the season or personal taste. Here is a basic recipe that you can customize as you like.

Ingredients

• 400g of short pasta (such as penne, rigatoni, or fusilli)
• 1 eggplant
• 1 zucchini
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 200g of cherry tomatoes
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 300g of mozzarella for pizza (or a cheese that melts well)
• 100g of grated Parmesan cheese
• 250ml of béchamel sauce (optional for a richer version)
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• Fresh basil (optional)
• A pinch of chili pepper (optional)

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 180 °C.
2. Wash the vegetables. Cut the eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers, and cherry tomatoes into cubes. Thinly slice the onion and mince the garlic.
3. In a large pan, heat some oil and sauté the onion until it becomes transparent. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute.
4. Add the eggplant and cook until they begin to soften. Add the zucchini and bell peppers and continue to cook. Finally, add the cherry tomatoes, salt, pepper, and aromatic herbs to taste (basil, chili pepper, etc.). Cook until all the vegetables are soft but not mushy.
5. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta al dente according to the package instructions. Drain the pasta and save some of the cooking water.
6. Mix the pasta with the vegetables in the pan (if it’s large enough) or in a large bowl. If you want, add the béchamel to make everything creamier, thinning with some pasta cooking water if necessary.
7. Cut the mozzarella into cubes and fold it into the pasta.
8. Pour everything into a baking dish, sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and a drizzle of oil.
9. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until the surface is golden brown and crispy.
10. Let it rest for a few minutes before serving.

Trivia

Baked pasta is a traditional Italian recipe often associated with holidays or Sunday meals. Vegetables add a touch of lightness and color to the dish, making it as pleasing to the eye as it is to the palate.

Remember, you can always add fresh herbs or spices to further enrich the taste of the baked vegetables. And if you enjoy more intense flavors, you can also include black olives or capers in the vegetable mix. Enjoy your meal!