Roasted Garlic and Eggplant Pasta Nests

And yet another Rachael Ray recipe. Delicious. The eggplant puree gave it a much richer taste than a normal tomato sauce.

Ingredients:
Coarse salt
1 lb angel hair pasta
3 TB EVOO
5 garlic cloves
1 can tomato sauce
20 fresh basil leaves (we used dried basil)
1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1 medium-sized firm eggplant
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves (we used dried parsley)

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
2. Place the whole eggplant, skin and all, on a rimmed cookie sheet. Pierce the skip on top of the eggplant several times with the tines of the fork. Drizzle a little EVOO on your hands and coat the garlic cloves well.
3. Wrap the garlic in a single layer of foil. Place the garlic packet next to the eggplant. Place the pan in the lower third of the hot oven and roast for 18 to 22 minutes, depending the thickness of your eggplant. It will look weird, like a blown tire, when removed from the oven.
4. When the eggplant has been in the oven for 15 minutes, add the pasta to the boiling water with salt.
5. Heat the tomato sauce in a large, deep skillet, over medium-low heat. Add red pepper flakes and garlic; season with salt and pepper.
6. When eggplant is done, carefully cut away skin from the cooked eggplant flesh. Careful, it will be hot. You can be messy because you're just trashing the skin.
7. Unwrap the garlic and pop the pulp from the skins. Place the eggplant and garlic in a food processor with the parsley. Season with salt and pepper and process until fairly smooth.
8. Mix the eggplant mixture into the hot tomato sauce and stir in the basil to wilt.
9. Drain the pasta and toss with sauce and cheese.
10. Grab a meat fork (or just a large one). Stick the fork into the pasta and bring up a heaping forkful. Turn and twist the pasta using your plam to guide the pasta a bit to form a nest. The recipe should yield 8 small nexts, 4 inches wide and 5-6 inches long.
11. Serve 2 nests per person with a small salad and bread.