Pasta with porcini mushroom and eggplant sauce

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 2 garlic cloves
• 8 tbsp olive oil
• 2 sprigs of thyme
• 2 small eggplants, approx. 150 g each
• 100 g onion(s)
• 400 g porcini mushrooms, firm heads
• 250 g tomatoes
• ½ bunch flat-leaf parsley
• salt and pepper
• 320 g pasta (fettucine)
• Sugar

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 30 minutes

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius (Gas 2-3, fan-assisted oven not recommended). Roughly chop a garlic clove and spread it on the baking sheet with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the thyme. Clean the eggplants and halve them lengthwise. Place them cut-side down on the oil and herb mixture. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and cook in the oven on the second rack from the bottom for 30 minutes. Finely dice the remaining garlic and onions. Carefully clean and halve the mushrooms, quartering larger ones. Wash, drain, and roughly chop the tomatoes. Roughly chop the parsley. Remove the eggplants from the oven, let them cool slightly, and then cut into 2 cm pieces. Heat the remaining oil in a wide saucepan and fry the mushrooms, eggplants, onions, and garlic for 5 minutes, stirring. Add the tomatoes and braise over medium heat for 15 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and a pinch of sugar. Meanwhile, bring plenty of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to the package instructions. Drain, reserving 150 ml of the pasta water. Add the pasta water to the sauce. Add the pasta to the sauce. Briefly toss to coat, stir in the parsley, and serve immediately with freshly ground pepper.