Feta, Eggplant, and Olive Sauce (for pasta)

This recipe comes straight from While the Pasta Cooks. I rediscovered it last night, and it's an old favorite.

Ingredients:

1 lb. pasta (they say "any shape" but I also prefer fusilli or rotini or bowties in this, I wouldn't make it with any of the "long" pastas)
1 1/2 lbs. small firm eggplant, stemmed, peeled, and cut into thin 2-inch-long strips
1 tsp. salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 medium onion, chopped
Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
12 imported black olives (Mislinis, Kalamata, or Nicoise), pitted and coarsely chopped
4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and stir a few times to ensure that the pasta does not stick to itself. Boil vigorously for the time recommended on the pasta package or until the pasta is tender.

While the pasta cooks, toss the eggplant with the kosher salt in a microwave-safe dish. Cover and microwave at full power for 2 minutes. Transfer to a clean kitchen towel and squeeze out the excess water.

Heat the oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and red pepper flakes and cook until the onion has softened, about 2 minutes. Add the oregano and eggplant and cook until the eggplant has lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic, basil, and olives.

Drain the pasta and toss it in a serving bowl with the sauce and feta cheese.

My notes: The key to actually getting all of this done "while the pasta cooks" is to make sure everything is chopped and measured before you start boiling the water. Also, I know I've recommended in other recipes that you don't need to pit the olives, but in this one, it's better if you do. This is also a fairly dry sauce.