Ratatouille is a French Provençal stewed vegetable dish that originated in Nice. Recipes and cooking methods vary widely, but most have tomatoes in common. We are having fun with this recipe by including all five nightshades featured in our Cooking Fresh recipes: tomatoes, tomatillos, potatoes, eggplants, and peppers. The key to this recipe is to slice all your vegetables to be consistent in size.
LATE SUMMER RATATOUILLE
Ingredients
Tomato Sauce
- 1 pound tomatoes
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- Salt to taste
Veggies
- 4 fingerling or new potatoes, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick pieces
- 1/2 Japanese eggplant, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick pieces
- 1 medium-size tomato, sliced in half lengthwise, then in 1/4-inch-thick slices
- 1 thin red or orange bell pepper, sliced in half lengthwise, then in 1/4-inch-thick slices
- 1 tomatillo, sliced in half lengthwise, then in 1/4-inch-thick slices
Herb Seasoning
- 8 –10 basil leaves, chopped
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. and move one rack to the top slot in the oven.
- For the sauce, cut the tomatoes in half and grate on a box grater, discarding the remaining skins. Cook on medium-low heat in a wide, nonreactive skillet with garlic until thickened into a sauce, about 15 minutes. Season with salt to taste.
- Prep all your veggies while the tomato sauce is cooking. In a small bowl, mix all the herb-seasoning ingredients and set aside. Spread tomato sauce on the bottom of a 9x9-inch baking dish. Stack veggies by alternating layers of potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and tomatillos. Spoon the herb seasoning over the vegetables.
- Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes, remove foil, and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Move pan to top rack and broil for 2 additional minutes to add some char to the veggies.
Edible celebrates New Mexico's food culture, season by season. We believe that knowing where our food comes from is a powerful thing. With our high-quality, aesthetically pleasing and informative publication, we inspire readers to support and celebrate the growers, producers, chefs, beverage and food artisans, and other food professionals in our community.
