MA Summery Pasta with Veggie Sausage, Feta & Olives

What You’ll Use

Basil

Pasta with ratatouille, veggie sausage, and olives

Crumbled feta cheese

Pick the remaining basil, toss the stems, and tear the leaves. Heap the pasta into bowls, and reheat in the microwave until warmed through, 1 to 2 minutes each. Sprinkle some of the crumbled feta over the top, reserving the rest for the salad. Garnish with basil leaves, and serve warm.

Make-Ahead Instructions

Step 1

To prep the ratatouille, cut the eggplant and zucchini into bite-size pieces. In a colander set over a bowl, toss the eggplant and zucchini with 1 tablespoon salt; let drain. Cut the pepper into bite-size pieces. Roughly chop one of the red onions. Smash 4 or 5 cloves of garlic and remove the skins.

Step 2

In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, warm 3 tablespoons olive oil. Working in batches if necessary, cook the eggplant and zucchini until tender and starting to brown, about 10 minutes. Add more oil between batches if the pan begins to look dry. Transfer to a plate.

Step 3

In the same pot, warm another 2 tablespoons olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the onions and bell pepper. Cook until the onions turn translucent and the peppers begin to soften, 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until aromatic, 1 minute. Stir in the cherry tomatoes, and cook until they start to soften and burst, 6 minutes. Smash the tomatoes as they soften to help them burst and release their liquid. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in 2 cups vegetable broth, then fold in the eggplant and zucchini. Simmer until the stew is silky and the flavors have combined, 10 minutes. Set aside 2 cups of the ratatouille for the pasta. Let the rest cool, then transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate.

Step 4

To prep the pasta, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add half of the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente, 9 minutes or 1 minute less than the package instructions. Drain the pasta, reserving ½ cup of the pasta water.

Step 5

Meanwhile, drain and roughly chop the Castelvetrano olives. Cut the sausages into coins. In a large skillet or frying pan over medium-high heat, warm 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the sausage and cook until browned and warmed through, 3 minutes per side. Transfer the sausage coins to a plate. Drain any excess fat from the skillet. Return the skillet to the heat, and stir in the reserved 2 cups of ratatouille, along with the cooked pasta, pasta water, and olives. Cook until the sauce coats the pasta and the veggies are warmed through, 3 minutes. Fold in the sausage coins. Let cool, transfer to an airtight container, and refrigerate.

Step 6

To prep the salad, slice the cucumber into half moons. Slice about ¼ cup of the other red onion, reserving the rest for another use. Transfer the cucumbers and onion to an airtight container and refrigerate.

Contains: milk, eggs, tree nuts, wheat.