When I was growing up my maternal grandparents lived in San Francisco. They lived on Russian Hill, (the home of Lombard Street, the ‘twistiest street in the world’ for any having visited The City), above Columbus and Bay streets, two blocks from the cable car turnaround station by Fisherman’s Wharf. A favorite thing to do when we visited them was to board the cable car and take it to the end of the line downtown. We’d be dumped out at Union Square, the urban mecca of soaring luxe department stores and bustling business people. We’d walk from there through North Beach, which at the time was exclusively the Italian section of the city, and through Chinatown to arrive back at their flat.
When I was about 11 I became obsessed with fortune cookie fortunes. On a particular visit that year I bought them everywhere we went, and would gingerly open them, savoring the prophetic wisdom on the little paper within. I saved every single one. Mid trip I bought a large bag at a fortune cookie factory in Chinatown on one of our walks and spaced out the opening of the cookies to last the rest of the trip.
With all the little fortunes tucked safely away, I had one last cookie I’d saved for the plane ride home. Brimming with the positive omens in my pocket, I had every confidence each one would come true. I joyfully opened my last cookie to find this fortune:
“IGNORE ALL PREVIOUS FORTUNES”
I repeat.
“IGNORE ALL PREVIOUS FORTUNES” (insert the soundtrack of cartoon tires screeching to a halt here).
I would not say it completely robbed me of seeing any magic in the world after that but it did take some big wind out of my fortune-seeking sails.
So when I selected this mitten-shaped eggplant at my CSA pick up last week I did NOT jump to the conclusion it would definitely be snowing that night but the symbolism did not escape my sense that seasonal change might be afoot. And truth be told within a few days the temps dropped significantly, signaling fall was on its way. We are now hearing rumors of our first freeze coming, firmly instilling some cold weather food on my table.
Full confession? I have only begun to eat eggplant in the past two years. Each time I tried to sample it prior I found it so slimy I could not get passed that to even consider the taste. I’ve since learned how to cook it so it is a favorite vegetable of this time of year.
Along with eggplant I’m bursting at the seams with local, seasonal produce between my Cure Organic Farm CSA share and my own garden. I cannot keep up. This dish is the perfect celebration of our late summer/early fall vegetables that are in their prime now. It is a simple, rustic dish bursting with flavor and great texture (not scary, slimy, I’ll-kill-myself-if-I-have-to-eat-that-stuff texture). Lots of garlic only highlights the best of all the vegetables while filling your kitchen with the most heavenly aromas it slowly bakes.
EARLY FALL RATATOUILLE
Pronounced ‘rat-a-two-ee’, you can change this dish up in several ways. Add other vegetables you have on hand. Add potatoes. I used fresh thyme and Mexican oregano (for its citrus overtones) from my garden. Use any herbs you enjoy. I wanted this to be rustic and casual so used large, rough chopping. If you are cooking for a ‘vegetable phobe’, smaller more discrete bites might be good!
Salting Eggplant:
There are a variety of opinions about salting eggplant before cooking it. The intent is to draw out any bitterness, more commonly found in larger eggplant. I never salt smaller varieties like my beloved Fairy Tale or Twinkle. Not wishing to leave anything to chance, I do salt larger eggplant.
1. Cover sides of sliced eggplant with salt (heavily coated). Set aside for an hour if possible.
2. Rinse the eggplant slices well to remove the salt. Pat dry with a kitchen (not paper) towel.
3. Proceed with recipe preparation.
Ratatouille instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Pour 2 tablespoons of the olive oil into a heavy casserole dish and rotate the casserole to spread the oil.
3. Add all the vegetables, herbs, garlic, salt and pepper into the casserole. Drizzle remaining two tablespoons of olive oil on the top.
4. Place in the heated oven, uncovered, and bake for 1 hour. During the cooking time, stir the vegetables once or twice so they are sure to cook evenly.
5. Garnish with fresh herbs and serve as a side dish or over rice!
Post Script: Serving ideas! When I picked up our weekly CSA share today I mentioned to Farmer Anne Cure that I’d made this Ratatouille with our farm proceeds and from my garden. Anne commented this is such a versatile dish it can be used in a number of ways: as a pasta sauce, over risotto, over rice. I would add over polenta , over a frittata or even over mashed potatoes.
Recipe
RATATOUILLE
Ratatouille is a perfect recipe to enjoy late summer and early fall vegetables. Flavored with fresh herbs.
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Servings: 6 side dish servings
Calories: 168kcal
Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 pounds eggplant sliced ½ inch thick and salted (see below) then quarter the slices
- 2 large yellow onions sliced
- 1 red bell pepper cored, seeded and sliced
- 1 yellow bell pepper cored seeded and sliced
- 1 pound zucchini stems removed, cut into chunks
- 2 -4 tomatoes I used heirlooms from my garden, roughly chopped
- Fresh thyme and oregano used a few sprigs of each, stripped from the stem
- 8 Garlic Cloves peeled and roughly chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Salting Eggplant:
- Cover sides of sliced eggplant with salt (heavily coated). Set aside for an hour if possible.
- Rinse the eggplant slices well to remove the salt. Pat dry with a kitchen (not paper) towel.
- Proceed with recipe preparation.
Ratatouille instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Pour 2 tablespoons of the olive oil into a heavy casserole dish and rotate the casserole to spread the oil.
- Add all the vegetables, herbs, garlic, salt and pepper into the casserole. Drizzle remaining two tablespoons of olive oil on the top.
- Place in the heated oven, uncovered, and bake for 1 hour. During the cooking time, stir the vegetables once or twice so they are sure to cook evenly.
- Garnish with fresh herbs and serve as a side dish or over rice!
Notes
Salting Eggplant
There are a variety of opinions about salting eggplant before cooking it. The intent is to draw out any bitterness, more commonly found in larger eggplant. I never salt smaller varieties like my beloved Fairy Tale or Twinkle. Not wishing to leave anything to chance, I do salt larger eggplant.Nutrition
Calories: 168kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 13mg | Potassium: 716mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 847IU | Vitamin C: 84mg | Calcium: 47mg | Iron: 1mg
Did you make this recipe?Mention @boulderlocavore or tag #boulderlocavore!
Sarah Catherine says
Oh how I love fall! Ratatouille sounds really good. I don't ever think I've had it before but my mom used to make something called jumbot that sounds really similar…kind of like take a bunch of veggies and herbs and throw them together in a pot kind of deal. Love it!
Sneige says
Highly delicious! You can never go wrong with these ingredients! Especially aubergine/eggplant.
So autumn; on my menu next week! Thanks for sharing!
Lea Ann says
Beautiful dish. I've never made Ratatioulle … looks perfect for Fall. And would you please keep that “F” word up in Boulder. I've got too many tomatoes that need to ripen before that happens. 🙂
RavieNomNoms says
This is gorgeous! I really love Ratatouille…the flavors are always so nice around Fall time
tartedujour says
Wow… the rich colors! This is a stunning ratatouille. I bet the 'gawker' and the 'spotting' were all over that photo! I adore your story about San Fran memories at your grandparents house. How special!
Lizzy says
Oh, I adore ratatouille….and yours is picture perfect!
The Mom Chef says
You and I have been on the same eggplant track. Even though I grew up with it, being in a Mediterranean family, I never liked it. My reason was more the bitter flavor than the sliminess, but they come from the same place and the salt step cures both ills.
Anyhow, I love the look and texture of your ratatouille, which I have now come to embrace as well. I like the fact that it's not a mushy blob on the plate but each vegetable is clearly defined. It's gorgeous.
Meeling says
Looks awesome…anything with eggplant and tomatoes has to be good!!
Cooking with Michele says
I firmly believe in fortune cookies and have several kept in my desk drawer from over the years! Also, try a splash of balsamic vinegar in your ratatouille – really good!
Nikki @ The Tolerant Vegan says
This is stunning! My favorite thing about fall is ratatouille (and hockey season starting back up)