Ratatouille

I came across a ratatouille recipe by Mark Bittman in the book I'm currently reading (Food Matters). It intrigued me to look into what a ratatouille consists of. According to wikipedia - its mainly tomatoes, onions, eggplant and zucchini. Bittman added cauliflower and chickpeas instead of the zucchini. I searched online for different recipes - all different. Some slow cooked, some roasted, some spent hours laboring over peeling the tomatoes.


I decided to come up with my own version. Seemed like the recipe is pretty much up for individual interpretation. I didn't want mine turned into a soupy, over-cooked mush. I wanted to be able to taste each vegetable individually. So I lightly roasted big chunks of different vegetables.


I also decided to indulge myself with a glass of wine. A glass of Syrah from the Francis Coppola wineries. 'Cause The Godfather series just wasn't enough for him. Good wine though!

Ratatouille

Eggplant
Tomato
Carrot
Zucchini
Cauliflower
Garlic
Red pepper
Green pepper
Onion (I happened to have a Cipollini, which tastes great roasted, but any kind should do)
Salt
Thyme
Rosemary
EVOO

Cut everything up in big chunks.
Add salt, thyme, rosemary and olive oil and toss.
Spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet (or 2)


Roast veggies for about 40mins - you want them just browned not mushy. Toss once half way through.
Broil for the last 2 mins. Keep an eye on this!!
Toss in some finely chopped cilantro once its out of the oven.
Serve with a nice crusty baguette.

Dig in!