The Bizalions Ratatouille Recipes

Steps:

• Set a large 12-inch saute pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Once hot, add the onions and garlic to the pan. Cook the onions, stirring occasionally, until they are wilted and lightly caramelized, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the eggplant and thyme to the pan and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the eggplant is partially cooked, about 5 minutes. Add the green and red peppers, zucchini, and squash and continue to cook for an additional 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, basil, parsley, and salt and pepper, to taste, and cook for a final 5 minutes. Stir well to blend and serve either hot or at room temperature.

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, saute onions and garlic in 1 tablespoon oil until tender. Reduce heat to low., In a large skillet, saute eggplant, zucchini, squash and peppers in batches in remaining oil until lightly browned, adding each batch of sauteed vegetables to the Dutch oven., Add the stock, bay leaf, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper to the Dutch oven; stir. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes., Meanwhile, fill a large saucepan two-thirds with water; bring to a boil. Score an "X" on the bottom of each tomato. Using a slotted spoon, place tomatoes in boiling water for 30-60 seconds. Remove tomatoes and immediately plunge into ice water. Discard skins and coarsely chop tomatoes., Drain vegetable mixture, reserving juices. Remove vegetables from the pan and set aside. Return juices to Dutch oven. Bring to a boil; cook until thickened, about 5 minutes. Return vegetables to pan and stir in tomatoes. Discard bay leaf.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven for 375˚F (190˚C).
• Slice the eggplant, tomatoes, squash, and zucchini into approximately ¹⁄₁₆-inch (1-mm) rounds, then set aside.
• Make the sauce: Heat the olive oil in a 12-inch (30-cm) oven-safe pan over medium-high heat. Sauté the onion, garlic, and bell peppers until soft, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, then add the crushed tomatoes. Stir until the ingredients are fully incorporated. Remove from heat, then add the basil. Stir once more, then smooth the surface of the sauce with a spatula.
• Arrange the sliced veggies in alternating patterns, (for example, eggplant, tomato, squash, zucchini) on top of the sauce from the outer edge to the middle of the pan. Season with salt and pepper.
• Make the herb seasoning: In a small bowl, mix together the basil, garlic, parsley, thyme, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Spoon the herb seasoning over the vegetables.
• Cover the pan with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover, then bake for another 20 minutes, until the vegetables are softened.
• Serve while hot as a main dish or side. The ratatouille is also excellent the next day--cover with foil and reheat in a 350˚F (180˚C) oven for 15 minutes, or simply microwave to desired temperature.
• Enjoy!

Steps:

• Preheat a grill. Remove stems from the eggplant, and slice on a sharp slant to make fairly large, 1/2-inch-thick slices. Core, seed and quarter the pepper. Remove stems from the zucchini, and cut them lengthwise into 4 slices. Grill the vegetables until they are browned, then dice into 1/2-inch cubes.
• Heat the peanut or grapeseed oil in a large skillet. Add the onion, ginger and garlic, and cook over medium-low heat until they are tender. Add the diced grilled vegetables and the tomato, and cook, stirring gently with a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes. Add the oyster sauce, rice vinegar and sesame oil. Cook, stirring, a few minutes longer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Fold in the scallions.
• Sprinkle with cilantro and serve hot or at room temperature, as a first course or side dish.

Steps:

• Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat until shimmering, about 1 minute. Add the bell peppers, onion and 1 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring often, until the onions are translucent and the bell peppers have softened slightly, about 10 minutes. Add the eggplant, the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring often, until the eggplant is very soft, about 8 minutes. Add the zucchini and continue to cook, stirring often, until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato paste and red pepper flakes, if using. Cook, stirring often, until the zucchini has softened, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in the tomatoes, bring to a simmer and then reduce the heat to low and cover the pot. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the ratatouille has reached a thick stew-like consistency, about 10 minutes. Stir in the parsley and basil with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon into a bowl and sprinkle with more fresh parsley and basil before serving.

Steps:

• Coat a large wide pan with olive oil. Add the onions, season with salt and crushed red pepper and bring the pan to a medium heat. Cook the onions until they are soft and very aromatic but have no color, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes, 1/2 cup water, thyme bundle and season with salt. Cook the tomatoes until they become very pulpy and have broken apart, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Add the peppers and cook for 5 minutes. Add the eggplant, summer squash and zucchini, season with salt and cook until the squash is soft, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Stir in the basil and taste to make sure the seasoning is correct. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Steps:

• Slice the eggplant and salt it lightly. Set aside for a half hour, then wipe the salt off with a paper towel. Cut the peppers lengthwise into strips. Slice the remaining vegetables. Add enough olive oil to fill the bottom of a heavy pot 1/8-inch deep. Add the onions and cook on a low flame until soft but not brown. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. While stirring, add the zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes, basil and thyme. Cook for 45 minutes to an hour on low heat. Serve hot or cold.

Steps:

• Combine olive oil, parsley, oregano and garlic. Puree in food processor or blender. Set aside.
• Remove stems from eggplant and cut in half lengthwise. Rub some of the oil mixture over the cut surfaces.
• Cut peppers in half; remove stems, veins and seeds. Coat with oil mixture.
• Cut onions into slices 1/2 inch thick; coat with oil mixture.
• Trim stems from zucchini and coat with oil mixture. Trim stems from tomatoes and toss with oil mixture.
• Grill vegetables over a low-medium charcoal fire. The cherry tomatoes will cook very quickly; remove before they turn to mush. The peppers, onion and zucchini should be lightly colored and barely tender. The eggplant should be soft.
• When vegetables have cooled, cut all but tomatoes into smaller pieces (leave tomatoes whole). Put in bowl.
• Add the vinegar, basil, salt and pepper and toss. Marinate vegetables 2 to 3 hours at room temperature or overnight in refrigerator. To serve, return to room temperature.
• When ready to serve, adjust seasonings. Additional olive oil may be necessary.

Steps:

• At least an hour before cooking, light the charcoal fire.
• Cut away the stems of the eggplants but do not peel. Quarter and slice them into three-inch sticks. Place the eggplant on skewers. Set aside.
• Roast the peppers on the grill until the skins are blackened and loose. Remove from the grill, place in a paper bag and set aside for 10 minutes. Then peel under running water, discarding the stems, seeds and ribs. Slice lengthwise into strips about one-quarter- to one-half-inch wide. Place the pepper strips in a serving bowl.
• Chop the anchovies and the garlic together to make a coarse mixture. Mix in the olive oil. Add one-quarter cup of this mixture to the pepper strips and stir. Place the eggplant in the remaining marinade while preparing the rest of the vegetables.
• Place the onion quarters on skewers, brush with a little of the marinade and grill until they are browned, almost black. Remove from the skewers, chop roughly and toss with the peppers.
• Brush the zucchini with a little of the marinade and grill. When browned on both sides, remove them and cut into one-quarter- to one-half-inch pieces. Add to the other vegetables.
• Brush the tomatoes with the marinade. Grill them, cut side up, until skins are loose. Remove and cut each half in thirds. Add them, with their juice, to the other vegetables.
• Grill the eggplant sticks until they are well browned on both sides. Add to the vegetables. Mix well.
• Add any remaining marinade to the vegetables. Mix well and season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with the basil and capers. The dish may be served immediately or set aside, but should be served at room temperature.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the squash in a roasting pan and toss with 2 teaspoons of the oil. Roast until just tender, tossing from time to time, about 25 minutes.
• Heat the remaining teaspoon of oil in a large, nonstick skillet. Add the roasted squash and the carrots and cook for 3 minutes. Add the leeks and cook for 2 minutes. Add the zucchini, apples and shallots and cook for 3 minutes longer. Stir in the vegetable or chicken broth, salt and pepper and simmer until the vegetables are tender but not too soft, about 15 minutes. Serve warm.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Prepare the vegetables: Smash and peel 3 garlic cloves, reserving the 4th. Halve onions through their roots, and slice halves into 1/4-inch-thick pieces. Slice zucchini into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. Cut eggplant into 1-inch cubes or spears. Seed peppers, and cut them into 1/4-inch-thick strips.
• Spread each vegetable on a separate rimmed baking sheet (use extra sheets as necessary). Add the 3 cloves of smashed garlic to the onion pan. Add 1 sprig rosemary and 2 sprigs thyme to each of the pepper, eggplant and zucchini pans. Sprinkle salt lightly over vegetables. Drizzle 3 tablespoons olive oil on each of the pans.
• Place all the pans in the oven (or work in batches if they don't fit at once). Cook until vegetables are very tender and lightly browned at the edges. This will take about 35 to 40 minutes for the peppers (their skins should shrivel), 40 to 45 minutes for the eggplant and zucchini (the eggplant should crisp slightly and the zucchini should be well cooked, so let them go 3 to 5 minutes longer than you normally might), and 60 to 65 minutes for the onions. Don't worry about the vegetables being pretty; they will meld into the ratatouille. Shake or stir the pans every 15 to 20 minutes or so, especially the onions.
• In the meantime, prepare the tomatoes: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add tomatoes and blanch until the skins split, about 10 seconds. Use a slotted spoon to quickly transfer the tomatoes to a bowl filled with ice water.
• Using a paring knife, peel the cooled tomatoes (the skins should slip right off). Halve tomatoes across their equators. Set a sieve over a bowl. Working over the bowl, use your fingers to seed the tomatoes, letting the seeds catch in the sieve and the juice run into the bowl. Discard seeds but save juices. Dice tomatoes and add to the reserved juices in bowl.
• Finely grate or mince remaining garlic clove. Add garlic to tomatoes along with bay leaves and a large pinch of salt. Set aside.
• Once vegetables are done cooking, combine them on one baking sheet or a large shallow baking dish and add ingredients from tomato bowl. Toss well. Vegetables will be stacked, and that's O.K. Cover generously with olive oil, using remaining ¼ cup oil or more, and sprinkle with salt. Everything should have a good coat of oil, but should not be drowning in it. Cook at least 1 hour, stirring every 15 to 20 minutes, until vegetables are very tender and imbued with juices and oil. Add salt and pepper to taste, then serve warm, or let cool.

Steps:

• In a large skillet cook the onion and the garlic in 2 tablespoons of the oil over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons oil and heat it over moderately high heat until it is hot but not smoking. Add the eggplant and cook the mixture, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes, or until the eggplant is softened. Stir in the zucchini and the bell pepper and cook the mixture over the moderate heat, stirring occasionally, for 12 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and cook the mixture, stirring occassionaly, for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Stir in the oregano, the thyme, the coriander, the fennel seeds, the salt, and pepper to taste and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in the basil and combine the mixture well. The ratatouille may be made 1 day in advance, kept covered and chilled, and reheated before serving.