Ingredients

The following ingredients have 11 Servings
  • 2 pounds eggplant
  • 2 pounds zucchini
  • 1 ½ pounds vine ripe garden tomatoes (or the best ripe tomatoes you can find)
  • 1 ½ pounds plum tomatoes
  • 3 tablespoons kosher salt
  • 1 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil, divided
  • 1 large red onion, (¾ pound)
  • 4 large garlic cloves (2 tablespoons) minced
  • 2 pounds mixed bell peppers (red, orange and yellow) about one each, diced into one-inch pieces
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, about four sprigs removed from stems
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • Zest from half a lemon
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon good quality balsamic vinegar
  • 20 large basil leaves
  • 1 loaf Italian bread or French baguette, sliced
  • 1 large garlic clove to rub on the grilled or toasted bread
  • Grated Parmesan cheese to sprinkle over each Bruschetta

Instruction

  • Lay out three sheet pans with racks placed in each.
  • Peel and slice the eggplant into one-inch thick slices. Lay out on one of the sheet pans.
  • Do not peel the zucchini but slice as you did for the eggplant.
  • Dice all tomatoes into large one-inch dice and lay out on the third sheet pan.
  • Use one tablespoon of salt for each sheet pan. Sprinkle salt on both sides of the eggplant and zucchini.
  • Sprinkle the last tablespoon over the tomatoes.
  • Let all three pans sit for two hours turning every 30 minutes in a stacked formation as shown with tomatoes on top to press out additional liquid.
  • Go read a book or watch Ratatouille on DVD. 🙂
  • After two hours, rinse salt from eggplant and zucchini and dry with paper towels and set aside.
  • Transfer the tomatoes to a strainer over a bowl to collect more water until you are ready to use. No need to rinse off salt.
  • Discard all liquid collected from the three vegetables.
  • OK, the hard part is over. From here it is pretty simple.
  • Take the now dried eggplant and dice into one-inch cubes.
  • Do the same for the zucchini.
  • In a very large skillet or sauté pan (ours was 12” across and 3” deep), heat two tablespoons of the olive oil over high heat until just shy of smoking.
  • Add half the eggplant and sauté for 6-8 minutes until lightly browned.
  • Remove to a large bowl and add two more tablespoons of the oil. Once hot, add the second half of the eggplant and once cooked, remove to the same bowl.
  • Add two more tablespoons of oil and add half the zucchini and cook for about four minutes until browned.
  • Remove to the same bowl as the eggplant and add two more tablespoons of oil to the pan.
  • Cook the second half of the zucchini and add to the bowl.
  • Add two more tablespoons of the oil and once hot, add all of the bell peppers.
  • Cook for eight minutes stirring around with a wooden spoon. Remove to the same bowl as the other vegetables.
  • Add two more tablespoons of the oil and reduce the heat to medium high.
  • Once hot, add the red onions and sauté for five minutes then add the garlic.
  • Cook for one more minute then add the drained tomatoes along with the fresh thyme, salt, pepper and lemon zest and cook over medium high for five minutes.
  • Add tomato paste, balsamic vinegar and the entire bowl of the cooked vegetables.
  • Gently stir, cover and cook over medium low for 20 minutes. Occasionally stir gently to make sure it doesn’t stick.
  • After 20 minutes, remove lid and remove from heat.
  • Stack the 20 basil leaves and with a knife, slice into thin ribbons and add to the mixture.
  • Slice the bread and oil both sides then broil or grill and rub with a little raw garlic.
  • To serve, top each grilled bread slice with a few spoons of the ratatouille, drizzle a little olive oil over the top and finish with some grated Parmesan cheese.