Summertime Ratatouille
Mmmm Veggies!
I am not a fan of kitchen gadgets. One will never find a garlic press, food processor or even a panini press in my kitchen. I prefer to use items that aren’t so specialized. In this case, however, I prayed for a mandolin. I did prepare these near perfect discs armed with only my knife and patience. I really didn’t mind that much. I enjoy quietly slicing away in the kitchen. But by medallion number 156 or so, my patience was wearing thin. So I suggest that if you have the means, invest in one if haven’t already.
At any rate, this dish started out beautiful and finished up tasting as good as it looked. Moreover, this is a wonderful vegan dish. One of the few places I didn’t even think about using butter! I could hardly believe it myself. Jenny added a sprinkle of Parmesan as I was tempted to add goat cheese myself. But I embraced the unadulterated vegan-ness of it all to my great enjoyment!
Ratatouille
Ingredients:
2 Red Bell Peppers (long and skinny work best for this), Sliced into 1/8″ medallions
2 Japanese Eggplants, Sliced as above
2 Zucchini, Sliced as above
2 Yellow Squash, Sliced as above
1 15oz Can Tomato Sauce
1 Large Shallot, Minced
2 Garlic Cloves, Minced
Fresh Thyme
Salt and Pepper
Directions:
1. Slice, as uniformly as possible, bell peppers, eggplant, zucchini and squash and set aside.
2. In an approximately 9×9″ baking dish, pour in the tomato sauce, add the minced shallot and garlic, salt, pepper and thyme to taste. Gently stir to combine evenly.
3. Alternating each ingredient, place the medallions, mostly overlapping, concentrically in the dish. I started from the outside and worked in towards the center. But feel free to try the opposite direction. Once you reach the middle, start over until the dish is full and even, seasoning each layer with a little salt and pepper (I had some left over veggies. I saved them for a stir fry a few days later).
4. Sprinkle a generous amount of fresh thyme, and even a couple sprigs, over the top. Cover with parchment paper and bake in a 375 degree oven for 45-55 minutes. Serve alone or over couscous.