CATS Ratatouille

Have you seen the movie? Well, here's a recipe for Ratatouille - a flavorful vegetable stew - that comes with two thumbs up. It is SO colorful and delicious. Your kids asked for THIRDS. That usually only happens with baked goods. It started like this: My friend Joy, who was out of town, gave me her weekly CSA (Community Sponsored Agriculture) box. It was packed full of farm-fresh goodies, including eggplant, green, red and yellow peppers, onions, heirloom tomatoes, zucchini, and basil. What I loved about sharing this with the kids is that the veggies come super-fresh, straight from the ground -- with some roots, flowers, and dirt still attached. How shocking- real food without wrappers and plastic boxes! We soaked and washed and chopped the heck out of that nutritious pile of colorful stuff. This recipe made the most of the bounty and I hope you will try it! It's going into the menu rotation at my house. You can put ratatouille over rice, quinoa, on a tortilla, in a crepe, or serve it over pasta. You could even use it in an omelet. No wonder they made a movie about it. ;)

Dinner

Ingredients

2 large leeks, trimmed, with white part cut into thin rings (or 1 large onion, chopped)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 oval or two Asian eggplants, cubed in about 1/2″ squares
2 medium zucchini, cubed
2 medium yellow squash, cubed
3 sweet peppers, i.e. green, yellow and red, or mixed colors, chopped
2 large fresh tomatoes, (ours were giant heirlooms) or 4 smaller ones
8-10 fresh mushrooms, chopped
Olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
3 sprigs fresh thyme (can use dry seasonings if you don’t have fresh.)
Grated Parmesan cheese, if desired

Instructions

In a large skillet , heat about a tablespoon of the oil and saute the garlic and leeks. When they are fragrant and a little softened, transfer them to a large pot on another burner.Keep the pot on low heat.
In the empty skillet, add about another tablespoon of oil and saute the zucchini and yellow squash, eggplant and peppers. When softened, transfer to the pot, and stir. (If you don’t have a giant skillet, do this in batches.)
Saute the mushrooms. Add them to the large pot, stir, and season with salt and pepper. Add the thyme. Cook over medium heat for ten minutes. Add tomatoes, basil, and parsley, stir, and cook ten more minutes.
Serve in bowls and top with Parmesan cheese if you like. Beware, the kids like to have an inch of cheese on top if they can get away with it. 🙂

More Information

One thought: you could visit your local Farmer’s Market to buy all the ingredients – fun in itself! Then make this recipe.

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