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Eggplant Pesto is an EASY and versatile recipe. Itโs in fact excellent for seasoning pasta, but it also lends itself very well to accompany both white and red meats, or to fill bruschetta, croutons or sandwiches.
Pasta with eggplant pesto is that first course that always turns out well, everyone likes it and itโs very simple to make. A recipe that immediately makes you want summer, dinners with friends and chilled wine! It is precisely in the summer that the aubergines give their best, they are no longer bitter and no longer pinch in an annoying way. Obviously, given that they are always available at the grocery store, at any time of the year it will be possible to make the recipe for pasta with eggplant pesto even when you simply feel like it.
Being a pesto we find in this preparation all the main ingredients that characterize it.
Just on the oil I would like to invite you to be careful: try to use an excellent quality EVO oil, in this way all the flavors of the ingredients will be enhanced.
Eggplant pesto is a preparation that you absolutely must try at least once in your life. A recipe with eggplants, which are first cooked in the oven and then pounded with pine nuts. A tasty pesto easy and greedy.
You can made it with zucchini, broccoli, bell peppers and beets, not to mention dried fruit and aromatic herbsโฆ now, with the arrival of summer, pesto is always a good idea. Today I am going to make it with eggplants! Eggplant pesto is a tasty sauce prepared with almonds or pine nuts, garlic clove and extra virgin olive oil, with the addition basil or mint leaves to give a touch of freshness and lightness. The coarse texture of the partially chopped almonds contrasts pleasantly with the creaminess of the eggplant puree, which is enhanced and enhanced by the simple but decisive flavors of this preparation! Try the eggplant pesto with pasta, on croutons or even in a sandwichโฆ even the most suspicious children wonโt be able to resist eggplants in this version!
Recommended items for this recipe:
Partanna Sicilian Extra Virgin Olive Oil is made with Nocellara del Belice olives also known as Castelvetrano Olives in Sicily, Italy
Eggplant Pesto
Ingredients
Instructions
To prepare the eggplant pesto, first wash and dry the eggplants, then arrange them on a baking sheet, pierce them with the tines of a fork and cook in a preheated fan oven at 430ยฐ for 45-50 minutes. Alternatively in an air fryer for 30 minutes at 450ยฐF.
After the cooking time, remove the eggplants from the oven and let them cool. When they have cooled down, remove the top end and cut them in half
Take the pulp contained inside them with the help of a spoon. Place the pulp obtained in a narrow-mesh strainer, place the strainer over a bowl and press with a fork or the back of a spoon to make them lose the vegetation water.
At this point, transfer the eggplant pulp into a mixer fitted with blades; add the pine nuts, garlic, basil and extra virgin olive oil then season with salt and pepper.
Activate the mixer and blend for about a minute, until you obtain a thick and creamy puree, even if not completely homogeneous due to the presence of partially chopped pine nuts which will add a crunchy note. Your eggplant pesto is ready to be used!
Spread on croutons or on pasta! Enjoy and leave me a comment!
Note
STORAGE
The eggplant pesto can be stored in the refrigerator, in a glass jar and covered with oil, for 3-4 days.
You can freeze the eggplant pesto in small jars and defrost it at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
TIPS
The eggplant pesto has a limited number of ingredients, but a few targeted substitutions are enough to vary the taste and aroma according to the use you will make of it: for example, you can flavor it with basil instead of mint, or you can use pecorino instead of parmigiano to get a stronger flavor!
