Another Fun Word to Say....Ratatouille!

My neighbor stopped over the other day with a bag full of vegetables still warm from the sun, and ALL of them perfect!

With the above selected, I decided to make ratatouille. I made it this time in a large, heavy skillet with plenty of olive oil. I didn't even wait for the rustic bread to finish baking before I helped myself to a bowl full, topped with grated Parmesan Reggiano.

Ratatouille (guidelines)
1-3 T Olive oil
1 medium size onion chopped
1 -2 cloves garlic minced
1 small eggplant, peeled and cubed (I leave some of the peel on)
1 small yellow crookneck or staightneck squash, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4 inch thick slices
1 small zucchini, cut into 1/4 inch rounds
1/2 red pepper, seeded and chopped or sliced long
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
salt/pepper
2 small leaves fresh basil, chopped
2-3 small sprigs of fresh parsley, chopped
2 leaves Italian oregano, chopped

You can really have fun with this recipe. We'll get to variations in a minute, but here the basics.

When cutting eggplant, use a stainless steel knife v. carbon steel. Carbon steel will react with its phytonutrients and cause the eggplant to turn blackish. I

"To tenderize the eggplant (flesh) and reduce some of its naturally occurring bitter taste, you can sweat the eggplant by salting it. After cutting the eggplant into the desired size and shape, sprinkle it with salt and allow it to rest for about 30 minutes. This process will pull out some of its water content and make it less permeable to absorbing any oil used in cooking. Rinsing the eggplant after "sweating" will remove most of the salt. " This little fun fact was taken from www.whfoods.com

Remember to stir your Ratatouille as it is cooking, and often!

If stove top cooking, you can use either a heavy stock pot or large heavy skillet. Cook onion and garlic till tender in 1 table spoon olive oil, medium heat. Add a little more olive oil to the skillet then add eggplant. Eggplant will soak up some of the oil, and then release it as it cooks. Add yellow squash, zucchini and red pepper, cook till slightly tender 5-10 minutes. Add a bit more olive oil if needed. Add chopped tomatoes, salt and pepper. Bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer with lid on for 20-30 minutes. Vegetables should be tender, but not mushy. Add herbs and continue cooking for 10 minutes with the lid off.

Serve on a bed of rice or with a chunk of rustic bread for dipping, and grated hard cheese.

The great thing about this recipe is it has a lot of play room. Here are a few more options...

Caramelize the onions and garlic, then cook each vegetable individually in olive oil. After all have been cooked, combine together with herbs and tomatoes, marrying the flavours.

Combine all the ingredients and roast, uncovered in a 350F oven. Don't forget to drizzle a generous amount of olive oil over the vegetables, and a dash of salt and pepper. Once the vegetables are tender and the skins have started to brown, add the fresh herbs and return to the oven covered until the vegetables are tender to your liking.