Trevor’s Ratatouille

Name: Trevor’s Ratatouille
Ingredients: Zucchini: 2 cups, chopped; Summer Squash: 2 cups, chopped; Eggplant - 2 cups, cubed; Onion - 1 large onion, roughly chopped; Garlic - a few cloves, sliced thin (*or two whole heads. Separate cloves, but keep wrapped in their papers); Green or Red Peppers - 1 to 2 peppers, cored and cut into long strips and then in half; Tomatoes: 5-6 cups, chopped (see directions below for blanching and removing skin); Tomato Sauce: 2-3 cups; Salt and Pepper; Honey; Fresh, torn basil-- a few handfuls, finely sliced

Trevor says he makes the best ratatouille around. Well... it is seriously delicious. One of the things that sets this recipe apart is that he roasts all the vegetables independently first, and then cooks them all together. He also peels his eggplant, which can get tough during cooking.

Zucchini: 2 cups, chopped

Summer Squash: 2 cups, chopped

Eggplant - 2 cups, cubed

Onion - 1 large onion, roughly chopped

Garlic - a few cloves, sliced thin (*or two whole heads. Separate cloves, but keep wrapped in their papers)

Green or Red Peppers - 1 to 2 peppers, cored and cut into long strips and then in half

Tomatoes: 5-6 cups, chopped (see directions below for blanching and removing skin)

Tomato Sauce: 2-3 cups

Salt and Pepper

Honey

Fresh, torn basil-- a few handfuls, finely sliced

Start by preparing all your vegetables. Cut the zucchini and squash into cubes about a half inch by a half inch. Skin the eggplant and cube it up, too. Chop your onion and peppers into similarly sized dice.

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Slice a small 'X' in the bottom of each tomato (5-6 big ones). Once the water is boiling, drop in the tomatoes for about 30-45 secs. Using a slotted spoon, remove the tomatoes and rinse under cold water. Peel back and discard the skin (it gets tough when cooked) Roughly chop the tomatoes.

Toss the zucchini in a bowl with a little sunflower oil (or olive oil). Season with salt and place on an oiled cookie sheet. Do the same to the squash and eggplant, but keep all ingredients separate. * Garlic variation-- add whole cloves of garlic, tossed in oil and still in their papers, to the oven to roast for extra sweetness. 2-3 whole heads.

Roast the vegetables in the oven (350 - 375 degrees), turning them once or twice, until they start to have color and a lot of the water is baked out. Remove each ingredient as it finishes (they won't be at the same time.)

In a heavy bottomed pan, get some oil hot. Add your onion and pepper and sauté until slightly translucent. If you're using sliced garlic instead of or in addition to the whole roasted cloves, add it in now and be careful not to burn it. Next, add the tomatoes, tomato sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat down to a simmer.

Add the roasted eggplant, zucchini, and squash and let simmer until it thickens. This can take a while depending on the tomatoes. You can also transfer to a crock pot and let it simmer there. Add a few tablespoons of honey to mellow out the acid. Continue cooking until consistency you desire is reached. Add in about half the chopped fresh basil 15-20 minutes before you plan to serve it.

Check for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed. Top with the rest of the basil. Serve as a side dish, main course, or a condiment. Trevor serves his over homemade Mac N' Cheese, Cat likes it with a steamed egg on top (crack eggs directly into the pot of cooked ratatouille and cover for a few minutes. Scoop out portions with an egg on top.) Parker likes his over pasta.

CategoryMain Course, Salads, Sides, Slow-Cooker, Soups & Stews, Trevor Clatterbuck, Vegan, VegetarianTags#bellpeppers, #greenpeppers, #redpeppers, #summersquash, #basil, #eggplant, #garlic, #peppers, #tomatoes, #zucchini

Ingredients