Ratatouille

A wooden bowl of RatatouilleRecreational Ratatouille
The recent warm weather has me thinking about summer. This has me thinking about my garden—the garden that I am not planting this year. I am not planting a garden this year because, for the first time in I don’t know how long, there will be no tournaments. This summer will be youth-sports-free which is both fantastic and kinda sad, but mostly fantastic. It also means we are able to do what we want on the weekends.

Our summer will be filled with camping trips and college campus tours as well as family junkets to new and amazing cities. There will be baseball games (played by professionals) and beach days and music concerts. I can’t wait. But, because life can be awesome this way, there will still be fresh home-grown vegetables.

How is this possible without planting a garden you may ask? Because my mother-in-law, who swore she would not be planting a garden this year either, caved and planted everything under the sun. Therefore, I know without question that I will be reaping the benefits of her summer bounty when her produce cup runneth over and she has had it up to here with zucchini.

It’s the best of both worlds. Livin’ my best life while enjoying good food and helping to relieve the burden of overabundance. What can I say? I’m a giver…

Ratatouille
Adapted from Alice Waters’ The Art of Simple Food and Food 52
Yields 6 to 8 servings

This classic recipe is surprisingly easy to prepare and results in a delicious showcase of summer vegetables and flavors.

From Food 52
This Genius ratatouille recipe from Alice Waters fusses only where it needs to fuss (over-salting the eggplant to sweat it and patting it dry). And, it adds a few smart, modern details—red chile flakes, a basil bouquet—that improve on a well-worn classic. Plus, its ratio is easy to remember: All vegetables conveniently work out to about a pound.

Ingredients
1 medium or 2 small eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch dice
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided, plus more to taste
2 medium onions, cut into 1/2-inch dice
4 to 6 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 bunch basil, tied in a bouquet with kitchen twine + 6 basil leaves, chopped
1 pinch dried chile flakes
2 sweet peppers, cut into 1/2-inch dice
3 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch dice
3 ripe medium tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch dice
Salt to taste

Directions
Sweat the eggplant
Toss the eggplant cubes with a teaspoon or so of salt. Set the cubes in a colander to drain for about 20 minutes.

Cook the eggplant
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot. Pat the eggplant dry, add to the pan, and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until golden. Add a bit more oil if the eggplant absorbs all the oil and sticks to the bottom of the pan. Remove the eggplant when done and set aside.

Add the flavorings
Cook the In the same pot, pour in 2 more tablespoons olive oil. Add onions and cook for about 7 minutes, or until soft and translucent. Add the garlic, basil bouquet, dried chile flakes, and a bit more salt. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes

Add the other veggies
Stir in peppers. Cook for a few more minutes, then stir in summer squash. Cook for a few more minutes, then stir in tomatoes. Cook for 10 minutes longer

Add the eggplant back in
Stir in eggplant and cook until all the vegetables are soft (about 10 to 15 additional minutes).

Adjust the seasoning
Remove the bouquet of basil, pressing it to extract all its flavors, and adjust the seasoning with salt. Stir in the chopped basil leaves and more extra virgin olive oil, to taste.

Serve warm or cold.

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