I had never heard of pasta alla norma until today after making eggplant and tomato spaghetti on a whim last night. I did a quick search to see if it was a traditional dish and it turns out it is! I used baby eggplant because that is what I had and used dried thyme and oregano, though it looks like most recipes call for fresh basil. I don’t really understand the whole salting and draining the eggplant thing. I don’t notice enough of a difference so skip that step!

~1/3 pound spaghetti
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion chopped (optional)
2 garlic cloves sliced
6 small eggplants chopped (or the equivalent in bigger eggplants)
3/4 cup crushed tomatoes
1 teaspoon sugar (if the tomatoes are tart)
Salt & fresh group pepper
Dried oregano and thyme (or fresh basil if you have it!)
Fresh parmesan cheese

1. Boil your spaghetti and drain (this can be happening at any point during making the sauce).
2. Heat the oil in a large skillet.
3. Sauce the onions and garlic for a few minutes.
4. Add the eggplant and cook until tender. I actually like this pretty cooked down and mushy.
5. Add the crushed tomatoes, sugar, salt, pepper, and dried herbs and continue to cook to let the flavors meld.
6. Toss your cooked spaghetti with the sauce and top with fresh parmesan cheese.