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A free spirited approach towards Mediterranean diet recipes

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7 Ingredient Eggplant Pasta

June 29, 2022 by Elizabeth Murray | Affiliate Disclaimer
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In this easy roasted eggplant pasta recipe, eggplant, olives and artichoke hearts are baked until meltingly tender, and are then tossed with your choice of pasta and a flavorful olive oil and vinegar dressing. It’s super quick and the meaty texture of the roasted eggplant makes this a great vegetarian dinner for the week!

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A large white porcelain serving bowl filled with fusilli pasta and roasted eggplant, olives and artichoke hearts

Make sure to check out the video for how to make it above the recipe card!

Why You Will LOVE This Eggplant Pasta Recipe:

When it comes to vegetarian dinners, you want something that is tasty and filling, but that also helps conquer that ‘meat’ craving. And eggplant is the PERFECT vegetable for this.

It’s meaty texture gives you that ‘chew’ your mouth has been waiting for, and it absorbs flavor like a sponge.

The roasted marinated artichokes contribute a pleasant balance of salt and vinegar that pairs perfectly with the simple eggplant pasta sauce.

  • Ohh, and it only uses 7 ingredients and takes about 3-5 minutes to prepare. (mic drop)

A close up shot of cooked fusilli pasta tossed with roasted eggplant, artichoke hearts and kalamata olives

A lot of Mediterranean eggplant recipes use tomato in their ingredients, which also tastes amazing (I mean, who doesn’t love a good tomato sauce on pasta?!). But for this recipe I decided to stick to a SUPER SIMPLE extra-virgin olive oil and vinegar sauce, or dressing. I find that using no tomato makes the flavors of the roasted vegetables stronger, and the raw extra-virgin olive oil is super healthy and recommended on a Mediterranean diet!

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One Skillet Shrimp Orzo Recipe

One skillet is all it takes to make this delicious shrimp and orzo dinner with buttery shiitake mushrooms and rich, sharp kalamata olives! It’s really easy to make, is loaded with incredibly healthy ingredients, and is very filling. Trust me when I say this is one of the best shrimp dinner’s you will ever have! …

Read moreOne Skillet Shrimp Orzo Recipe

Roasting The Eggplant

The roasted vegetables are the star of this show, so you want to make sure they are roasted to perfection! The key is to cook the eggplant so that it is caramelized on the outside and soft on the inside. You don’t want it to be too cooked through, or you will have soft, lifeless eggplant that will probably turn into mush once you toss it with the pasta.

  1. Cut the eggplant into 1 inch cubes. Place the cubed eggplant on a parchment lined baking sheet along with the kalamata olives and marinated artichoke hearts.
  2. Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt/pepper.
  3. Bake at 475 degrees F for 20-25 minutes. The eggplant should be fork tender, but not mushy!
A sheet pan covered in parchment paper filled with cubed eggplant, kalamata olives and marinated artichoke hearts

How TO Make The Eggplant Pasta Sauce

Since we are keeping this recipe extremely simple, we only use two ingredients for the sauce, plus salt and pepper.

Just plain old extra virgin olive oil and red wine vinegar!

Health Benefits Of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Known for it’s rich flavor and versatility in cooking, extra virgin olive oil is a favorite among many chefs and home cooks. In the Mediterranean specifically, good quality extra virgin olive oil is consumed daily!

Some of the health benefits of extra virgin olive oil are:

  • Rich in heart healthy fat’s like the monounsaturated fat oleic acid, which has been linked to several health benefits like the potential to help protect against heart disease. (read more HERE)

  • High in vitamins E and K

  • Great source of antioxidants, including the polyphenolic compound oleuropein, a substance that has been found to protect LDL (bad cholesterol) from oxidation. (read more HERE)

a small glass mason jar filled with oil and vinegar, which has separated

Quick Tip: When buying olive oil, look for the harvest date on the bottle, not the ‘sell by’ date. The more recent the harvest, the better! And there is less of a chance of purchasing olive oil nearing rancidity.

How To Store Leftover Pasta

Storing Leftovers – In order to prevent the eggplant from absorbing all of the oil and vinegar sauce, store them in separate containers in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. To re-heat, microwave the pasta and vegetables for around 50 seconds. Shake up the oil and vinegar sauce, then pour it over the top.

An overhead shot of a large white porcelain serving bowl filled with fusilli pasta and roasted eggplant, olives and artichoke hearts

FAQ

Is pasta part of the Mediterranean diet?

Absolutely! Since the Mediterranean diet is simply eating the foods that people enjoy in the Mediterranean and less of a ‘diet‘, in the diet culture sense, you can absolutely enjoy pasta! It is just encouraged to only consume pasta in moderation, and not every day.

What kind of pasta should I use?

You know I love to keep things simple and allow you to make your own ingredient decisions in the kitchen, so ANY pasta that you have will work great. If you want to keep it a little healthier, try a spinach or chickpea pasta!

What other ingredients can I add?

Since I tried to keep this really simple, we only use 7 ingredients(I consider salt/pepper one ingredient). But if you want to spice it up you ABSOLUTELY can! A little basil or parsley over the top would be amazing. And some fresh garlic in the oil and vinegar sauce would be absolutely delicious and would absorb into the eggplant nicely! And of course, if you want to add more vegetables, I encourage you to.

@recipehippie

Feel free to add whatever else you want to this, but I wanted to keep it a 7 ingredient dinner! Also, who’s been to Italy, show of hands 🙋‍♀️ I need to visit! #easydinnerrecipes #diy #learnontiktok #mediterraneandietrecipes #italy #pastatiktok

♬ Could You Be Loved – Bob Marley & The Wailers

More Healthy Recipes

Here are a few more recipes that you might enjoy!

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Did you make this recipe?  It would mean so much to me if you would rate it below the recipe card and tag me in your creation on Instagram so I can admire your work! @RecipeHippie

A large white porcelain serving bowl filled with fusilli pasta and roasted eggplant, olives and artichoke hearts

7 Ingredient Eggplant Pasta

In this easy eggplant pasta recipe, eggplant, olives and artichoke hearts are roasted until meltingly tender, and are then tossed with your choice of pasta and a flavorful olive oil and vinegar dressing.
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Prep Time 5 mins
Cook Time 24 mins
Course Dinner
Cuisine American, Mediterranean
Servings 2

Ingredients
  

  • 1 eggplant, stemmed and cut into 1" cubes
  • 1 cup pitted kalamata olives
  • 16 oz pasta of your choice, I used fusilli  (this may allow for leftovers, so decrease amount if you don't want leftovers!
  • 1 cup marinated artichoke hearts
  • 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • sprinkle of salt for the vegetables, pink Himalayan salt or salt of choice
  • Fresh cracked black pepper

Ingredients For Sauce

  • 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 1/8 tsp pink Himalayan salt, or the salt of your choice
  • fresh cracked black pepper

Instructions
 

  • Pre heat the oven to 475 degrees F. Cook pasta according to instructions on box. Line a baking sheet with unbleached parchment paper.
  • Place the cubed eggplant, kalamata olives and artichoke hearts on the baking sheet. Drizzle with 3 tbsp of olive oil, and sprinkle a little salt and pepper over the top. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the eggplant is fork tender but not mushy.
  • While the eggplant is roasting, mix together 3 tbsp of olive oil with 2 tbsp of red wine vinegar, 1/8 tsp of salt and fresh cracked black pepper. (if you have a container with a lid that you can shake, this works well to combine the ingredients!)
  • When the eggplant, olives and artichoke hearts are done roasting, toss them with the cooked pasta of choice. Drizzle with oil and vinegar dressing and toss again. Serve and enjoy!
Keyword eggplant pasta, mediterranean eggplant recipes, roasted eggplant
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Category: 30 Minute Meals, Dinner Recipes, Mediterranean Diet Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
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Hey, I’m Liz!

I am SO thrilled to meet you!

I’m a Physical Therapy Assistant turned food blogger, and love merging my intrigue for the human body with my passion for all things food! I’m here to show you that enjoying a Mediterranean diet doesn’t mean that you can only eat Mediterranean food! I can’t wait to show you how rewarding the MedDiet lifestyle can be!

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About Me

Hello! I am the recipe hippie, and I am here to give you a free spirited approach towards home cooking. When it comes to the ingredients you have available, I challenge you to reject your conventional notions around recipes and think outside of the box. Substitutions are encouraged! So open up your pantry, get creative and have fun. Some of the greatest things in life originated through improvisation!

Hello! I am the recipe hippie, and I am here to give you a free spirited approach towards home cooking!

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