Ratatouille

I made ratatouille last night. I’d been thinking about making it for over a month. But yesterday, I found a recipe in one of my Mum’s Prevention magazines. It looked quite easy. So I made it.

Here are the ingredients:

3 tbsp olive oil
1 med yellow onion, peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 green bell peppers, sliced in 1/2″ strips
2 med zucchini, sliced in 1/2″ rounds
2 sm eggplant, sliced in 1/2″ rounds (about 1 lb)
4 lg tomatoes, peeled and chopped, or 1 can (28 oz) tomatoes, drained
2 tsp dried thyme
1 1/2 tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp chopped parsley

Yesterday, when I was in Whitehorse, I bought a zucchini (courgette for my European readers) and a chinese eggplant (aubergine). It is lighter in colour than a regular eggplant and it seemed like it would be less bitter. Anyway, here is my version:

I chopped up half a yellow onion into chunky pieces. I also sliced up a leek (the recipe didn’t call for leeks–I just like them). I sliced the leek lengthwise, then I sliced up the halves horizontally into cross-sectional strips. I chopped the pepper, the zucchini, and the eggplant into half-inch widths (I guess that’s approximately one centimetre). I made them all approximately the same size so they would cook evenly.

This recipe also asked for three cloves of garlic. My parents have this huge jar of minced garlic preserved in olive oil. I used about a teaspoon and a half.

I heated a fry pan and a scootch of oil on medium-high heat until the oil reached temperature. Then, I added the onions and the leek for about five minutes, stirring so they didn’t stick or brown too much. I added my teaspoon and a half of minced garlic for about a minute–until it was aromatic. 

Then, I reduced the heat to medium and added the vegetables until they began to soften. Oh. I’d forgotten to cut up the tomatoes when I cut up the other vegetables, so I rummaged in the fridge and found four tomatoes in the bottom drawer. I cut them up into the half-inch chunks and added them too. 

In terms of seasoning, I added rosemary, thyme, parsley, and salt and pepper. I might have added Italian seasoning if we’d had it, but my Mum grows and dries her own herbs and seasonings. We didn’t have it-per sae, just the rosemary, thyme, and parsley. After I tasted it, I think I could have added a touch of cumin–but I was keeping with the Italian theme. 

For protein, I grilled three Italian sausages. I left the ratatouille cook for about half an hour, then I turned it into a casserole dish and topped it off with grilled, cut-up Italian sausage. 

I wish I had taken a picture. It was yummy.