Ravioli with Eggplant Sauce

1 medium eggplant, firm and glossy Olive oil 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped 1 large clove garlic, finely chopped 1 red pepper, coarsely chopped About 60 mL (quarter of a cup) red or white wine A handful of fresh basil leaves One large can (796 mL or 28 oz) diced tomatoes Handful of pitted black olives Salt and pepper to taste About 250 g (half a pound) fresh filled ravioli Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Slice eggplant into half-inch thick rounds, brush with oil, and place under the broiler until brown; turn and brown other side. Remove and let cool.

While eggplant is cooking, pour about 30 mL (two tablespoons) of oil into a large frying pan and put in the chopped onion. Cover and cook 10 minutes on low heat until transparent and lightly browned on the edges.

Turn up the heat to mediumhigh and add the red pepper. Stir and cook until browned at edges and add the garlic.

When garlic is a pale gold (this takes less than a minute) pour in the wine and stir until almost all the liquid has boiled off. Tear the basil leaves into small pieces and add half of them to the mixture. Add the canned tomatoes and olives, stir and cover; cook another 10 minutes.

While the sauce is cooking, boil the ravioli. You can do this either in a saucepan of salted water, or add about half a cup of water to the sauce and put in the ravioli for the final few minutes of cooking. They will cook nicely in the sauce and absorb the extra water as well as some of the flavour.

When ravioli are done, remove to a serving plate. Taste the sauce and add salt or pepper as needed. Pour the sauce over the ravioli and topped with the rest of the basil leaves and the grated cheese.

Makes two to three servings.