ratatouille

Since I've decided to go the way of the vegetarian, I've been cooking more and more. I've also been attempting to train Kevin how to cook (he didn't even know how to brown hamburger... he asks me if it is done, I ask if it is brown, he says yes, then I say... well if you are browning the hamburger and it is now brown, then I think you are done).

Last night we made Ratatouille, and while it was not nearly adorable as a rat making the dish, I think it was still good. You MUST like vegetables a lot and have high quality produce to make this worth the effort since it really just emphasizes the best qualities of the vegetables. We modeled our version on a recipe from allrecipes.com.

Makes 4 very large servings or 8 small servings. You can serve with noodles or rice, but we just ate ours plain.

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• 1 eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 3/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 zucchini, sliced
• 1 summer squash, sliced
  
• 1 large onion, sliced into rings
• 1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1 green bell pepper, sliced
• 2 large tomatoes, sliced

Heat 1 T oil, and saute garlic, onion, and eggplant on medium heat until eggplant is softened.

Layer vegetables in casserole dish coated with 1 T. olive oil: eggplant/onion/garlic mixture, sprinkle of parm, zucchini/squash, sprinkle of parm, mushrooms/bell pepper, sprinkle of parm, and tomatoes on top with the rest of the parm.

Note: You can add some salt to the dish, we just did a small sprinkle on top because I don't like adding a lot of sodium. I figure individuals can salt their own if they want more.


Cook for 45 minutes in a 350 degree oven.