Ratatouille - NO, not the Movie!!

The abundance of vegetables gave us the perfect opportunity to do Ratatouille. There are many recipes for this dish and many of them cook everything in one pot. Well, I prefer to do each veggie separate and then layer in a casserole dish. I just think you get better flavor profiles as you bite into the dish versus all the flavors melding together. It can look a bit daunting, but it really isn't that difficult. We used this as a side dish to pork tenderloin and cherry chutney.

In this week's pic you'll see Okra - of all the vegetables in the food chain this is the one that is at the bottom in my opinion. I've never gotten the hang of it, but Debbie at Stoneybrook assures me that if you slice it and fry it up with potatoes (letting both vegetables get crispy) I will love them. I promise to give it a try!


Cheryl's Ratatouille

INGREDIENTS:
2 medium eggplant
2 Vidalia onions
6 small yellow squash
6 tomatoes (I mixed red, yellow and heirloom)
2 red peppers
1 green pepper
1 yellow pepper
3 cloves fresh garlic
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
Fresh Thyme (1 ½ Tablespoons)
Fresh Basil (8 leaves sliced into thin strips)
Dried Italian Seasoning blend (1 ½ Tablespoons)
1/4-1/2 cup of Parmesean Cheese

HOW TO:
This is a somewhat orderly process, so be patient as you will be rewarded with a very flavorful dish!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Slice the top and bottom of tomatoes and squeeze gently to remove some of the seeds (keep the shape of the tomato so don't squash it!) Once you've completed that step then slice all the tomatoes evenly and line them on a cookie sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and olive oil. Put them in the oven for about 30 min. You want the tomatoes to be soft but not falling apart, take them out of the oven and set aside till you are ready to assemble.

Eggplant: slice in ½ inch slices and place in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Sprinkle with salt on both sides and allow to sit for 20 min to draw out the bitterness of the vegetable. Pat each slice with a paper towel then cut into ½ inch pieces, set aside.

While you are waiting for those you can prep your other vegetables: Slice onion in half then slice thinly, set aside. Slice squash (I like to use a mandolin because it goes faster, but if you don't have one just slice into ¼ inch round slices), set aside. Seed and devein the peppers and cut into ½ inch pieces, set aside. Chop the fresh garlic finely, set aside.

Use a good size saute pan, I prefer a 12 inch non-stick. Medium-high heat for each vegetable, cooking them individually.

Onions – add olive oil to pan (couple tablespoons) add onions and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Saute till onions are tender and a little carmelized, set aside in a bowl when done.

Peppers - add olive oil to pan (couple tablespoons) add peppers and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Saute till peppers are tender and a little but not mooshy, set aside in a bowl when done.

Squash - add olive oil to pan (couple tablespoons) add squash slices and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Saute till squash has a little color and are tender. Set aside in a bowl when done.

Eggplant - add olive oil to pan (couple tablespoons) add eggplant pieces and a sprinkle of pepper and thyme. Saute till the eggplant is tender and has a some color, add chopped garlic about ½ way through the cooking. Set aside in a bowl when done.

ASSEMBLY – use a nice casserole dish and put the eggplant in first spreading evenly across the bottom of the dish. Repeat with onions and squash. Place a layer of the tomato slices using a spatula to transfer from the cookie sheet to your dish. (should be enough for 2 layers..so split up what you have in half.) Layer peppers in and sprinkle some Italian Seasoning evenly across them. Add your second layer of tomato slices and then sprinkle your Parmesean cheese evenly over the top.

You can prepare this the day before and keep refrigerated.

HEATING / SERVING:
Before serving heat your oven to 350 degrees and bake for 45 minutes or until the dish is bubbling.

OPTIONS:
The nice thing about Ratatouille is that you can use the type of vegetables you enjoy. Other recommendations: mushrooms, zucchini, collard greens or Swiss Chard!


Enjoy,
Cheryl