harvest time, part 4 (of 4): rustic ratatouille

about a year ago, i tried my hand at creating ratatouille, sans recipe, from a bunch of veggies my dad brought us from his garden. while  i liked the creation, i couldn’t stop tinkering with it during this harvest season, thinking that if i started with a basic recipe and tweaked it i would be able to create THE BEST ratatouille ever. so when mike’s mom brought us a lovely bag of veggies from her garden a few weeks ago, i rolled up my sleeves and began working on a new version of ratatouille.

all the ingredientsonions sauteeingsliced veggiessquash and eggplant

while i still think i could do a little tinkering next harvest season (i mean, what recipe is ever final? i think recipes could be re-tooled forever, and adapted to fit your favorite flavors over and over as they change and evolve with you), i think i landed on a pretty delicious dish, if i do say so myself.

into the pan

this time around, i went for a really rustic version. besides spending some time salting and allowing the eggplant to eek out some water, which is key – do not skip this step, or you’ll wind up with bitter, soggy eggplant at the end (thanks for enlightening me with this info, linn!) – all we did was chop and simmer. no peeling anything, no seeding (yes, this goes back to the great tomato peeling and seeding debate of ’09), just fussy-less vegetables mingling with each other while you figure out what else you want to serve with it.

simmering

ratatouille is so flexible that you could serve it all alone with crusty bread on the side, or over any type of pasta, or even next to rice. this time around, after much debate amongst myself, mike, my sister, and noah, we decided to serve the ratatouille over polenta. regardless of your choice of starch, i’m sure you’ll enjoy this recipe, as sure as i am that next fall i’ll be recreating it once more.

over polenta

rustic ratatouille, 2009 version

adapted from epicurious

  • 1lb eggplant, sliced into rounds
  • 2T olive oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 4 large garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 bell peppers (i chose green and red) chopped
  • 1 medium zucchini, sliced into rounds
  • 1 summer squash, chopped
  • 1 ½ lbs tomatoes, coarsely chopped
  • 10 kalamata olives, roughly chopped
  • 1/4c  flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • 10 fresh basil leaves, chopped
  • 1t salt, plus more to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4t red pepper flakes (or more, to taste)
  • 1/4c red wine (optional)
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  1. sprinkle salt over the eggplant rounds and allow to release their liquid for 15 minutes
  2. heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat
  3. saute onion and garlic in oil for 5 minutes, or until translucent
  4. add bell peppers, zucchini, and summer squash and saute 5 more minutes
  5. rinse and dry the eggplant to remove the salt, then add with the tomatoes and olives, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes
  6. add the parsley, basil, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and red wine, stir, and cover again, allowing to simmer for 5 more minutes or until sauce has thickened
  7. serve with rice, pasta, bread, or polenta and enjoy!

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