Ratatouille de Provence

Jennifer Brizzi's Recipe Pages

Ratatouille de Provence

Please use only the freshest, local, in-season vegetables for this versatile and delicious dish. If you can't find them, wait and make it when you can. It will be worth the wait. If you make it with the best ingredients, it keeps beautifully, for a few days even. And it's equally tasty cold from the fridge, at room temperature on a buffet, or gently warmed up as a veggie side dish or tossed with pasta.

1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
7 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 and 1/2 lbs eggplant, topped and tailed and cut into about 3/4” cubes
1 lb. young zucchini (about 3 medium), cut into about 3/4” cubes
2 sweet bell peppers, yellow, orange, or red, seeded, cut into about 3/4” squares
1 and 3/4 lb. fresh tomatoes, seeded and chopped coarsely
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
3/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Fresh basil cut into chiffonade sprinkled on top to serve

Sauté onion and garlic in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over low heat in a large, heavy bottomed pot until onions are translucent.

Add 3 more tablespoons of oil and turn up heat. Add eggplant and cook about ten minutes, stirring constantly.

Add zucchini and pepper squares with the remaining two tablespoons of the olive oil, and cook five more minutes.

Add tomato and remaining ingredients except basil and simmer about 20 minutes, until all vegetables have softened.

Serve hot, cold or room temperature, sprinkled with basil chiffonade, accompanied with crusty bread.

Jennifer Brizzi | P.O. Box 48 | Rhinecliff, New York 12574 | U.S.A.

jenniferbrizzi@yahoo.com