Pasta with aubergine and dried cranberries, can't wait for you to try this. I love a good food swap, and I've been making a similar dish, for years, using raisins instead of cranberries. The combo of anchovies, raisin, and pine nuts is a classic, from the Puglia region. And I was craving pasta with aubergine and raisin yesterday, but it was Sunday, and I had no raisin in my pantry. Didn't stop me. Some of the best meals are a total fluke. That is why the dishes I make when I am home alone are always the most successful. When I cook for Marlon or friends, I'm a more cautious, follow recipes to a tee. When I am alone, I follow my intuition. And it works. The results are always tasty. I can say that I never screwed up a meal I prepared for myself, but certainly have when cooking for someone else. It's weird, but I need freedom and no pressure in my kitchen.
First of all, if you can eat nightshades, and I certainly hope you can, because boy are they good, you need to know that aubergines are packed with antioxidants, fiber, vitamin B1 and B6 and potassium. And copper, magnesium, and manganese. Not bad, for a dirty emoji!

Even if the combination I settled on came out splendidly, feel free to swap some of the other ingredients for your own. The pine nuts by example, you can change for walnut or maybe sunflower seeds.
This one combines so many different flavors, the unami of the aubergine, the salt of the anchovies, with the acidity and sweetness of the cranberry, so even if it very easy to make, it is quite a sophisticated plate of pasta.
The trick is to take your time with the aubergine, let it dissolve, break down, soften completely. That what makes it so satisfying.

Pasta with aubergine, pine nuts and raisin for two:

400 grams of Your favorite pasta, I used wholegrain
one aubergine
One tin of anchovies
two tablespoon pine nuts
and two tablespoon cranberry
garlic to your liking

Chili pepper
parmesan

In hot pan heat the pine nuts and cranberry for a minute or less, till the nuts starts to color. Be careful it will burn quickly. Save them on a plate.
Add a bit of oil to the pan, and the anchovies and stir until dissolved. Then add the aubergine, cut in small pieces. Cook the aubergine until softens completely and only then add the garlic for a minute.
In the meantime, cook the pasta al dente.
Add the reserved pine nuts and cranberry and a bit of chili pepper to the aubergine. Drain the pasta.
Combine the aubergine sauce and pasta and serve with parmesan to your liking. Normally you don't need to add salt, the anchovies takes care of that.