Ratatouille
Ingredients
1 ½ pounds eggplant (1 medium sized), cut into ½ inch size cubes
2 small zucchini, cut into ½ inch size pieces
1 medium sized yellow squash, cut into ½ inch pieces
1 red bell pepper, cut into ½ inch size pieces
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into ½ inch size pieces
1 medium sized onion, finely diced
1 ¾ pounds Roma plum tomato (about 6 tomatoes), cut into ½ inch size pieces
6 to 7 tablespoons olive oil
3 teaspoons minced garlic
Salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
Crushed red pepper flakes, to taste
1 teaspoons dried thyme
Handful of chopped basil
Steps
If not already cut, take the time to cube and dice all your vegetables and set them on separate platters in preparation for cooking
To a large pot, add 3 to 4 tablespoons of olive oil and 1 ½ pounds of cubed eggplant
Turn the stove on medium heat and stir the eggplant as it cooks for 7 to 10 minutes
Season the eggplant with a dash of salt and some black pepper to taste
Once the eggplant begins to brown and soften, remove from the pot and transfer to a separate large bowl on the side
Add 2 more tablespoons of olive oil to the same pot
Add in the 2 diced zucchini and 1 diced yellow squash
Stir and cook the zucchini and squash over medium heat for 5 minutes
Season with a dash of salt and black pepper to taste and stir again to combine
Remove all the cooked zucchini and squash from the pot and transfer to the same bowl as the eggplant
Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pot and all the diced onion
Stir the onion as it sautes for 5 minutes
Then add all the chopped bell pepper
Stir the pepper with the onion as it cooks for 5 more minutes
Add 3 teaspoons of minced garlic to the pot and stir for 1 minute
Next add all the diced tomato and their juice to the onion and pepper and stir to combine
Season the tomatoes with some salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper to taste and add 1 teaspoon of dried thyme
Stir again and allow the tomatoes to cook for 10 minutes
Add the reserved eggplant, squash and zucchini to the pot, stir to combine with the tomatoes, onions, and peppers and allow the vegetables to simmer all together on low for 10 minutes
Add a handful of freshly sliced basil to the ratatouille and stir once more to incorporate
Serve the ratatouille in a small bowl with more basil on top