Pinch and Swirl

Roasted Vegetable Puttanesca Sauce

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A plate of pasta with Roasted Vegetable Puttanesca Sauce.

It’s August and, once again, I’m that crazy lady at the farmer’s market with 3 overloaded bags and swirling eyes who later stands at the refrigerator, stuffing bins and realizing that only two people live in the house. But, no matter. Summer vegetables are delicious and I can’t help myself.

And what comes of this vegetable gluttony? See that meaty looking sauce up there – guess what? It’s meatless.

You see, I got this idea. When I think of meaty textured vegetables, I think of eggplant and mushrooms, and I had pounds of both. Then there were the red ripe tomatoes, the garlic, the sweet onion, a tub of kalamata olives and a handful of capers. It’s starting to sound like puttanesca, don’t you think?

I decided to roast the vegetables before making the sauce to give an extra depth of flavor. Due to impatience alone, I roasted everything at the same time on two baking sheets. Good news: it worked perfectly.

Onion Garlic and Tomato
Roasted Tomato Onion and Garlic
Mushroom and Eggplant
Roasted Eggplant and Mushrooms

I may have snacked straight off of both baking sheets, including a whole, buttery garlic clove, but no one was looking so it doesn’t count.

A few notes: First, be prepared for what you’ll have in your food processor when you’re done processing the ingredients – it won’t look like sauce, it will look like tapenade. And, you could use some or all of it for that – it would be fantastic on bruschetta. But, if you want to use it for pasta sauce, be sure to save plenty of the pasta cooking liquid to thin it to your desired consistency. 

Second, if you want to make this as a vegan dish, just skip the cheese at the end – you could even throw in some chopped walnuts, almonds or hazelnuts if you want some extra protein. Last, and this may sound bizarre, if you want to add some heft, add a can or two of good quality tuna. Trust me, it’s fantastic.

More of My Favorite Italian Pasta Dishes

  • Pasta alla Norma (Another delicious, vegetarian pasta with custardy eggplant and silky sauce!)
  • Pasta Aglio e Olio (One of the simplest, most decadent delicious pasta dishes you’ll ever eat!)
  • Bolognese Sauce (You have to try this authentic sauce that we learned to make in a cooking class in Bologna, Italy!)
Print Recipe

Roasted Vegetable Puttanesca Sauce with Pasta

Be sure to save plenty of pasta cooking liquid to thin the sauce to your desired consistency.
Prep Time15 mins
Cook Time1 hr
Total Time1 hr 15 mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 6 people
Author: Marissa Stevens

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds ripe tomatoes cut into 1/2-inch thick slices across the equator
  • 1 sweet onion thinly sliced and separated into rings
  • 1 head garlic 1/2-inch cut from the top, exposing the cloves
  • 1 large eggplant cut into 1-inch cubes, about 1 pound
  • 1 pound mushrooms quartered
  • 1/2 cup olive oil or more
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 cup pitted kalamata olives
  • 1/4 cup capers drained
  • 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper or more
  • 28 ounce can or jar crushed tomatoes with liquid
  • 1 pound spaghetti or other long pasta I used whole wheat spaghetti
  • 1 ounce shaved Parmesan cheese or more
  • chopped flat leaf parsley for garnish (optional)

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 375°F.
  • Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • Arrange tomato slices on one baking sheet. Top tomato slices with rings of onion and nestle garlic head, cut side up among them.
  • On second baking sheet, arrange eggplant and mushroom pieces in an even layer.
  • Season both trays with salt and freshly ground black pepper and drizzle all over with olive oil.
  • Add both baking sheets to oven and roast until vegetables are tender and lightly brown, about 1 hour. Rotate baking sheets top to bottom half way through roasting time.
  • Remove baking sheets from oven and allow to cool slightly.
  • Add roasted vegetables from both baking sheets, along with olives, capers and crushed red pepper to food processor and process to a tapenade consistency. Taste for spice and adjust as needed.
  • Add eggplant mixture and crushed tomatoes to a large saucepan and stir to combine. Simmer over low heat, stirring often, until heated through and flavors have melded.
  • Meanwhile, put the pasta water on to boil. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving 2 cups cooking water.
  • In a large serving bowl, toss hot pasta with sauce, adding reserved pasta cooking water as desired until thoroughly combined. (You’ll find that the sauce coats the pasta beautifully!)
  • Serve topped with parmesan shavings and chopped parsley, if desired.
Tried this recipe?I’d love to see it! Tag me on Instagram at @pinchandswirl or leave me a comment and rating below.

About Marissa Stevens

The best food happens at home. I love delicious food prepared simply with fresh ingredients and that’s just what you’ll find here! You can count on me for well tested, mouthwatering recipes designed for home cooks.

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Comments

  1. Maggie | Omnivore's Cookbook says

    Me too, I love the fresh summer vegetables and I enjoy the vibrant color at the market. What a wonderful idea to puree the roasted veggies! Must try next time! We might have snacked on most of them but I believe some of them will make it to the food processor 🙂

    Reply

  6. Mon Petit Four (@byMonPetitFour) says

    Oh, guess what? I totally have all these ingredients right now. And THANK GOODNESS! I would have been harboring some serious food envy did I not have these ingredients. Because guess who is making this tonight? MOI! Marissa, please just let me move in and let me eat your food…please?? I promise to make you any dessert you want! Because, seriously, you always – ALWAYS – make me want whatever you’ve just made. You have such an amazing talent for combining ingredients and flavors. I feel like I frequent a lot of blogs and come across mouthwatering foods, but I would say that your blog is one of the only ones that makes me want to run to my kitchen and recreate what you’ve just made. Seriously, you are awesome. And I love that so many of your dishes do this perfect balance of healthy/wholesome without going too crazy granola and flavorless. Like you made this perfect health-conscious veggie sauce to pair with a more “indulgent” food like spaghetti, so it all balances out and tastes fabulous in the end. You never realize you’re eating so well because flavor and appearance aren’t sacrificed. When can I hire you as my personal chef?? 😀

    Reply

    • Marissa says

      I’ll be your chef and you be my baker, okay? No forget that, let’s work together on them both!! And thank you, thank you for the sweet video you did after making this recipe – totally made my week. xoxo

      Reply

  7. nagimaehashi says

    Oh my gosh! I saw the past, saw the roasted veg and wondered “what has she done with the veg”? You pureed them! OH WOW! PS I had to smile when I read your description of being at the farmers market. Could have been ME talking. You and me at a farmer’s market would be dangerous. 😉

    Reply

  8. HapaNomNom says

    I am just like you at the farmers market – I buy WAY too much for just 2 people! I usually end up making a ratatouille when I find myself with more veggies than I know what to do with. I never thought to make a veggie puttanesca sauce – what a brilliant idea! Pinned of course 🙂

    Reply

  10. whiskandshout says

    I am that crazy 18 year old who bought seven zucchinis for herself at the farm yesterday- oops! This looks amazing, the more veggies the better 🙂 Pinning!

    Reply

  11. hipfoodiemom says

    haha, I love that! the crazy lady at the farmer’s market with 3 overloaded bags of produce .. but you are right! how can you resist?! I love this roasted vegetable puttanesca sauce! delicious!!!

    Reply

  12. Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary says

    Who needs meat when you can have THIS roasted vegetable deliciousness?? Not I! I say give me ALL the puttanesca! This looks fantastic! I’m going to take one of your suggestions and throw in some toasted nuts (probably hazelnuts) – YUM! Add a little artisan crusty bread on the side? HEAVEN! Cheers and thanks for sharing the yummmm!

    Reply

  13. Dorothy Dunton says

    Hi Marissa! Roasted vegetables – yes, the more the merrier! I can’t think of a better way to make use of all that summer bounty! I’d have to hold a little of the pureed mixture back to spread in toasted baguette slices! 🙂

    Reply

  15. Joanne says

    I’ve been doing the same thing! My fridge looks like a farmer’s market tornado hit it…but my belly is happy. So worth it. Love the sound of this veggie-filled puttanesca!

    Reply

  16. Faith (An Edible Mosaic) says

    We would get along so well in real life – I’m that crazy farmers market lady too, lol! I love all the goodies going on in this sauce, and your idea of adding tuna really does sound perfect. And my (silly) hubby doesn’t like eggplant (!!), but maybe I could trick him since it’s pureed in this dish. (Cue the evil laugh, lol!) xoxo

    Reply

    • Marissa says

      We definitely would, Faith. I would LOVE it if you lived right next door. 🙂 And what!? No eggplant? Well, okay, I guess I won’t hold that against him. 😉

      Reply

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