Fresh Pasta and Eggplant Involtini

For the eggplant, heat a barbecue or stove-top grill on high. Brush the eggplant slices with oil and grill on each side until soft and cooked through. Set aside.

For the passata, heat the oil in a large saucepan on medium-low.

Add the onion and cook for about five minutes or until soft and translucent.

Add the garlic and cook for a couple more minutes.

Pour in the passata, tear in the basil leaves and stir well.

Cook on a low simmer for about 20 minutes. Season to taste, and if you prefer a smoother sauce, blend it up.

Now for the pasta, combine all ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer with a dough hook and mix for about 5 minutes.

Turn out to a lightly floured work surface and knead for a few more minutes until smooth and elastic Wrap with plastic and let rest at room temperature for 1 hour.

Divide rested pasta dough into four pieces.

Wrap the other three back in plastic and flatten one into a disc in the palm of your hands. Now begin rolling with your pasta machine.

Roll through setting 1 first, fold back in half and roll again.

Then repeat process on setting two, continuing until about setting 6 or 7 so you have a lovely thin, smooth length of pasta.

Drape this carefully over the back of a chair and repeat with remaining dough pieces.

Now attach the pasta cutter to your pasta machine and run pasta through the thinnest setting. Dust the pasta with flour so it doesn’t stick together and set aside to finish remaining pasta pieces.

Cook pasta for about 3 minutes in a big pot of boiling salted water. Drain and tip into the saucepan of tomato sauce and gently mix so all the pasta is well coated.

Preheat oven to 180C.

Roll a couple of tablespoons of the pasta mixture up in each piece of eggplant and arrange across the base of a baking tray.

Spoon in any extra tomato sauce, dot the top with the bocconcini and sprinkle with the parmesan.

Bake for 20 minutes or until the cheese is golden and bubbling. Serve.