Graziella's Pasta alla Norma from Sicily

Hi, I'm Graziella Marino from Belpasso and I'm going to make pasta alla norma. She places her tomatoes in boiling water to make them easier to peel. She then chops them up. Graziella learned to cook when she got married. She takes the tomatoes to the stove to simmer. Next, Graziella makes the pasta. This flour is made with heritage durum wheat. She adds one egg and enough warm water to make a dough. Graziella is Chef Carmelo Chiaramonti's neighbour. This pasta kneading technique is the same as his mother's. Did you like it? Once the dough is smooth, Graziella divides it into pieces to make it easier to roll out. When it is about three millimetres thick, she cuts it into ribbons. She hangs a tagliarini on a tree stump and it's ideal for drying pasta. She repeats this process with all her pasta balls. This is Carmelo's workshop and he loves to help. The tomatoes have been stewing without garlic or onion in a little sunflower oil. Graziella only adds salt. This sauce needs good quality tomatoes. Andrea, my cameraman, approves. Graziella checks the sunflower oil with a toothpick. If it bubbles, it's hot enough. She squeezes out the water from the eggplants. The slices are ready when they are golden. She adds extra virgin olive oil to season the tomatoes, along with some fresh basil. The pasta needs to cook for three or four minutes. Graziella and Carmelo dress the pasta with the tomato sauce and layer it with the fried eggplant and fresh basil. Piccolina e piccolina. Basilico e ricotta salata. Ricotta di pecora. The salted ricotta is an important ingredient and it comes from a local shepherd. This dish relies on top quality ingredients and it's absolutely delicious. Il piatto è servito. Buon appetito. Click the subscribe button for regular helpings of Pasta Granny.