Ratatouille

This evening I watched Jamie Oliver do his all to convince the LA Public Schools to eat some healthy food. I chuckled because I have been to Britain many times and I would not characterize the food over there as healthy. But I am open minded.

At one point, Jamie was showing how really gross leftover meat parts can be spun in a centrifuge and then cleaned up with bleach, ground and served on a bun. I kept wondering if one could avoid E-Coli by putting some bleach in the food he mixes with his filthy hands on his other cooking shows!

Speaking of healthy, I have mentioned in past blogs that I like to do the vegetarian thing every once in a while. I typically cook vegetarian if I have had a Martini before I realize there are no meat products in the fridge. So when I sat down this weekend with a freezing cold Martini and a cigar to watch the Masters I was thinking Osso Bucco for dinner Saturday night.

As fate would have it, when I turned on the TV my daughter's DVD of Ratatouille was still cued up. The fog of martinis and cigars allowed me to become distracted and for a time I forgot about the Masters and my Osso Bucco plan. Before returning to golf I concluded that if a cartoon rat could cook this dish, it can't be very difficult.

Ratatouille is a classic French dish made with summer ingredients. Done correctly and the flavors are soft and complex. Done incorrectly and it can be a mushy mess. This recipe is very good.

Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees.

Ingredients

1 cup good extra virgin olive oil
2 medium egg plants cut into 1-2" cubes
2 teaspoon sea salt
2 medium white onions chopped.
4 medium zuchini, washed and cut into 2" strips
1 medium sized red bell pepper and 1 medium sized green pepper, stemmed, seeded and cut into strips.
3 garlic cloves minced
1 28 ounce can of of Italian plum tomatoes, drained. (Regular canned tomatoes will do if you can't find Italian plum).
1/2 can (3 ounces) tomato paste.
1/8 cup chopped fresh Italian Parsley
1/8 cup chopped fresh dill
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
Cracked pepper

Pour 1/2 cup of olive oil into a roasting pan or an oven proof skillet. Add the eggplant and add just over half of your sea salt. Toss the eggplant in the pan, Jamie Oliver style, in order to coat your eggplant with the oil and salt. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum file. Roast in the oven for about 30 minutes.
Remove from the oven uncover and set aside.

In a large skillet heat 1/2 cup of olive oil over medium heat.  Saute the onions, garlic, peppers and zuchinni until lightly colored.  (About 20 minutes). Chop your canned tomotoes and add them to the pan. Add your tomato paste, parsley, dill, oregano, basil and cracked pepper. Cook about 12 minutes. Be careful to adjust your heat to allow it simmer uncovered.

Now add your eggplant with the oil and simmer for another 12 minutes.  Double check and season appropriately.

Allow it to cool for about five minutes before serving. Serve with French Bread and a nice red wine.