When our friend, Cale, joined us for an evening of
cooking, our inspiration was the vegetables growing in our garden. Ratatouille
seemed like a great way to use the veggies and since none of us had ever made
it, we checked out several recipes and then adapted them to utilize what we had
on hand and our own particular tastes. (We added mushrooms that are not traditionally
included in this French dish.)
The results were fantastic and we all vowed to make this
recipe again.
Our
ratatouille is a mixture of recipes from Martha Stewart and Emeril
Lagasse
+ a
few of our own ideas thrown in for good measure!
Ratatouille Makes 1½ to 2 quarts
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced
tomatoes or an equivalent amount of fresh tomatoes, peeled and diced
3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil—divided use
1 Japanese eggplant, diced medium to large
 |
| Barry & Cale prepping the veggies. |
Kosher salt and ground pepper
1 large yellow or white diced large
1 head garlic, cloves smashed and peeled
1 to 2 bell peppers (any color), seeded and diced medium
to large
About 3 to 4 small squash (zucchini & yellow crooknecks, or all
zucchini), diced medium to large
About 4 button mushrooms, sliced
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
2 to 3 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. Place tomatoes and juices on a rimmed baking
sheet Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and bake until thickened, 30 minutes,
stirring every 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in a colander, toss eggplant with
about a teaspoon of salt. Let sit 20 minutes, then squeeze out excess liquid.
4. In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat 2 to 3
tablespoons oil over medium.
5. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until
translucent, 5 minutes. Add garlic last few minutes of cooking.
6. Add peppers and cook, stirring, until
crisp-tender, 4 minutes.
7. Season with salt and pepper.
8. Add tomatoes, eggplant, squash, mushrooms, bay leaf, oregano
and thyme to pot.
9. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes
to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low, partially cover, and cook at a gentle
simmer until vegetables are tender but not mushy, 10 to 15 minutes.
10. Season
to taste with vinegar, salt, and pepper.
11. Remove
bay leaf before serving.
Dinner is served . . .
Recipe without photos . . .
Ratatouille Makes 1½ to 2 quarts
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes or an equivalent amount of fresh tomatoes, peeled and diced
3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil—divided use
1 Japanese eggplant, diced medium to large
Kosher salt and ground pepper
1 large yellow or white diced large
1 head garlic, cloves smashed and peeled
1 to 2 bell peppers (any color), seeded and diced medium to large
About 3 to 4 small squash (zucchini & yellow crooknecks, or all zucchini), diced medium to large
About 4 button mushrooms, sliced
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
2 to 3 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. Place tomatoes and juices on a rimmed baking sheet Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and bake until thickened, 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in a colander, toss eggplant with about a teaspoon of salt. Let sit 20 minutes, then squeeze out excess liquid.
4. In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat 2 to 3 tablespoons oil over medium.
5. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, 5 minutes. Add garlic last few minutes of cooking.
6. Add peppers and cook, stirring, until crisp-tender, 4 minutes.
7. Season with salt and pepper.
8. Add tomatoes, eggplant, squash, mushrooms, bay leaf, oregano and thyme to pot.
9. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low, partially cover, and cook at a gentle simmer until vegetables are tender but not mushy, 10 to 15 minutes.
10. Season to taste with vinegar, salt, and pepper.
11. Remove bay leaf before serving.
No comments:
Post a Comment