Best Ratatouille from the Abundant Summer Garden!
Make the best of summer’s abundance with a classic dish from France! Ratatouille isn’t just a movie title but a fabulous dish made with fresh eggplant, zucchini, peppers, and tomatoes! This one is an easy go-to for a lovely lunch or dinner option and relatively easy to make.
Summer Garden Ratatouille
Garden Ratatouille is made with all the fresh ingredients growing in your summer garden. Eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, bell pepper, and onion make this a wonderful summer delight. This dish has humble beginnings but its simple flavors interlace beautifully into a delicious main dish or a side.
Ingredients
- 1 medium eggplant, peeled, cubed, and salted*
- 1 tablespoon Kosher salt
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 4-5 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 zucchini, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
- 3 Roma tomatoes or 1 large heirloom, diced
- 1 14.5 ounce can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- Fresh cracked pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp aged balsamic vinegar
- 10 fresh basil leaves, chiffonade cut
- 2 ounces crumbled goat cheese (optional)
Instructions
- Peel and dice eggplant into 1/2-inch cubes. Place diced eggplant into a colander. Generously salt eggplant and let sit for 20-30 minutes. Salting removes excess liquid and some bitterness. Rinse salt off of eggplant, drain, and pat eggplant dry before adding to the dish.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot on medium-high heat. Sauté chopped onions for 3 minutes before adding chopped garlic and sauté for 1 more minute. Add in diced eggplant and cook for 4-5 minutes stirring often and adding a few tablespoons of water if needed.
- Next, add diced zucchini, bell pepper, dice tomatoes, and diced jalapeno and stir. Add 1 can of diced tomatoes, sea salt, and fresh cracked pepper, and let simmer for 10 minutes on medium heat. Remove from heat.
- Stir in balsamic vinegar and fresh chopped basil. Top with crumbled goat cheese to serve.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
