Ratatouille (my quick version)

Ingredients and a cup of tea

I realize this is more of a winter meal but spring can have its chilly days too when you want a hearty bowl of something warm and mildly spicy that doesn't take all day to make. This would be that kind of meal. If you prep the veggies earlier, it's even faster.

The recipe calls for garlic and onions. Of course, as I began making this I realized that I was out of both of those. So I substituted garlic powder and onion powder. Granted, the dish tastes far better with the actual garlic and onions but in a pinch, powder works.

Ratatouille

2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 medium onion, diced
1 medium eggplant, peeled and cubed
1 yellow squash, cubed
2 zucchinis (or as my grocery store insists on calling them: green squash), cubed
2 bell peppers, seeded and cubed
1 package sliced mushrooms
 1 large can diced tomatoes
1 tbsp basil
1 tsp thyme
3/4 cup good red wine (if you wouldn't drink it, don't cook with it)
1 package Italian hot sausage

In a small saute pan, cook sausage over medium heat until cooked through.

Meanwhile, in a stock pot, combine olive oil with garlic and onions. Cook over medium heat until onions are golden and garlic is fragrant (about 2 minutes) Add eggplant, squash, zucchini, bell peppers and mushrooms. Stir to combine and cook for two minutes more. Add can of tomatoes, red wine, basil and thyme. Stir, cover and simmer for about fifteen minutes, stirring occasionally.

When sausage is cooked through, slice into bite size pieces and add to stock pot, stirring well, remove cover and simmer for five more minutes.

When veggies are soft (after about twenty minutes) and stew is fragrant, remove from heat.

Serve as is, or covered in Parmesan cheese or over rice. This could even be tossed with angel hair pasta. It's very versatile. According to Mike, it also makes a great lunch the next day.

Eggplant Rollatini

 
There really isn't any anecdote to this recipe, sorry. We had a friend over this weekend and I wanted to make something I hadn't made in quite a while. Since she likes eggplant also, I decided to make this one. It came out quite well, if I do say so myself, and as many things, was even better the next day for lunch. Enjoy.

Eggplant Rollatini

2 eggplants, peeled and sliced lengthwise, into 1/2 inch slices
salt and pepper
3/4 cup olive oil
16 oz ricotta cheese
1 egg
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
3 tbsp grated Parmesan
20 basil leaves, thinly sliced or 1 tbsp dried basil
2 cups tomato sauce (recipe follows)

On a large baking sheet, arrange eggplant slices and sprinkle with salt. Set aside for 15 minutes. Rinse the eggplant and pat dry. Brush each slice with olive oil

Using a grill, or in my case the grill pan from Crate and Barrel, grill slices, about 4 minutes per side.

Spray a large casserole dish with olive oil and spread 1/2 cup of tomato sauce on the bottom. In a bowl, mix the ricotta, egg, mozzarella, Parmesan and basil. When the eggplant slices are cool enough to touch, place about a tbsp of cheese mixture at one end of each slice and roll. Place, seam side down, into the casserole dish. Continue with remaining eggplant slices. Spoon remaining tomato sauce over the eggplant and sprinkle with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, if desired. At this point, decide whether you want to cook it now or cover and refrigerate it, for up to 8 hours)

Bake, uncovered, at 375 degrees for 15 - 20 minutes, until bubbly. Serve.

Tomato Sauce (adapted from a recipe from Giada De Laurentiis)

1/2 cup olive oil
2 smallish onions, chopped small
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 celery stalks, chopped small
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
2 32oz cans crushed tomatoes
2 dried bay leaves
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

In a large pot over medium high heat, saute onions and garlic in the olive oil. When onions are translucent, add celery, salt and pepper. Saute until celery is soft. Add tomatoes, bay leaves, basil and red pepper flakes. Simmer, uncovered, for about an hour or until sauce is thickened. Remove bay leaves (hopefully you can find them)

Use in a recipe immediately, cover and refridgerate or freeze for a later date.