Ratatouille

From the French term touiller, to toss food, ratatouille is believed to have originated as a dish made by peasants around Nice in the Provence region of France as ratatouille niçoise, influenced from neighboring Spanish and Italian cuisine. Essentially a stewed vegetable dish, ratatouille generally contains eggplant, summer squash, bell peppers and tomatoes, which are baked, braised, roasted, sautéed or stewed with various herbs, garlic and onion. Because ratatouille can be made any number of ways using any number of ingredients, it is an easy and delicious dish to prepare and serve as an entrée, side dish or leftover. Baking the vegetables gives helps retain their integrity and them a rich flavor. Socca, beets and tangerines or polenta go well to compliment ratatouille.

1 small eggplant, thinly sliced into rounds

1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced into rounds

1 medium yellow squash, thinly sliced into rounds

1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced into rounds

1 large tomato, diced

1 tbsp basil, roughly chopped

1 tsp parsley, roughly chopped

1 small onion, diced

1 clove garlic, roughly chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

1. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until lightly browned, 5-10 minutes, stirring to prevent sticking. Stir in the garlic and tomatoes and continue sautéing until the tomatoes are tender and beginning to form a sauce. Fold in the basil and parsley, simmer until herbs are fragrant and remove from heat. Cool slightly before placing tomatoes in a food processor, purée into a fine sauce and season to taste with salt and pepper.

2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spread sauce evenly on the bottom of a medium baking dish, roughly 9"x9". Layer the eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash and red bell pepper evenly on the sauce. Drizzle the remaining olive oil on top and season with salt and pepper.

3. Place the baking dish in the oven and bake until vegetables are tender and lightly browned on top, 30-45 minutes. Remove the ratatouille from the oven and set aside to cool slightly. Top with Parmesan, goat or cheese of choice and serve ratatouille warm or room temperature.

Serves 3-4

Roasted Eggplants with Tomatoes and Feta

Eggplant, native to India, is an edible fruit, truly a berry, in the nightshade family, which also includes tomatoes and potatoes. Eggplants are presently cultivated and consumed throughout the world and grow in a wide range of shapes, sizes and colors. The seeds of eggplant tend to be bitter due to the nicotine, an alkaloid found in the nightshade family, contained within them, making eggplants the most nicotine rich edible fruit humans consume. Roasting eggplants creates an especially rich and earthy flavor and they taste great served at any temperature. Roasted eggplants with tomatoes and feta are delicious pared with socca, braised lentils and tangerine beet salad.

Any variety of eggplant may be used with minor adjustments for size and shape.

6 small Japanese eggplant, trimmed and quartered lengthwise

½ tomato, finely diced

¼ red bell pepper, trimmed and finely diced

¼ onion, trimmed and finely diced

1 clove garlic, pressed or finely chopped

½ c feta

1 tbsp parsley, finely chopped

1 tbsp rosemary, stem removed and finely chopped

1 tsp olive oil

salt and pepper

olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spread eggplant on a baking dish, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place eggplant in the oven and roast until tender, 10-15 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine feta, tomato, bell pepper, onion, garlic, herbs and olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve roasted eggplant on a bed of greens and top with tomatoes and feta. Serve eggplant warm, room temperature or chilled.

Serves 3-4

Baba Ghanoush

Though a nightshade and closely related to tomatoes and potatoes, eggplants originated in the Old World instead of the New and were likely first cultivated in southern and eastern Asia. Eggplants are the main ingredient in baba ghanoush, one of many different names for an eggplant salad or spread popular in the Middle East and Mediterranean and similar to hummus. Generally the eggplant used in baba ghanoush is roasted or broiled, giving the soft flesh a rich smoky flavor that combines well when further mixed with lemon, tahini and garlic. Although most commonly served with pita bread, I like to baba ghanoush with tortillas and socca too.

Roasted garlic adds rich depth to the baba ghanoush; raw garlic may be used instead for a fresher flavor.

1 medium eggplant, halved

½ lemon, juiced

1 clove garlic, roasted

¼ c tahini

¼ c parsley

1 tbsp olive oil, plus more for drizzling eggplant.

water

salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place eggplant halves on a baking sheet, skin side down, and drizzle with olive oil. Roast eggplant until soft and golden brown, 30-45 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside. Once eggplant has cooled, scoop seeds and pulp from skin and place in a food processor.

2. Add garlic, parsley, tahini, lemon and olive oil to food processor. Thoroughly combine ingredients into a thick paste. Slowly add water while continuing to process ingredients until desired consistency has been reached.

3. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm, room temperature or chilled.

Makes about 2 cups