I posted this decadent Summer Ratatouille photo on my Instagram page last week. I also thought I had posted the recipe here.
Maybe I had thought about posting it but I never followed through. I usually have excellent follow through but this delicious recipe definitely slipped through the cracks. I can only blame my busy schedule and although I have the best of intentions, sometimes I miss a few things. My apologies if you searched for this recipe and couldn’t find it!
This photo got a lot of love on my Instagram page and for good reason. It’s a beautiful dish, easy to prepare and completely delicious. I made this Summer Ratatouille at least 20 times last summer.
Because I was late getting my seeds started last summer, I went to my local farm and found loads of beautiful new starts. I wanted to plant a lot of cucumbers so I could use them in salads, do a bit of canning and then make some pickles. So I purchased 6 cucumber plants and 1 zucchini plant. That should be enough. Because zucchini plants can quadruple in size and produce a mountain of zucchini, I only bought one plant. Or so I thought.
Zucchini starts look almost identical to cucumber starts. Apparently, someone also thought the same and put all the zucchini starts with the cucumbers. I ended up with 5 zucchini and 2 cucumber starts. So by the end of summer I had way more zucchini than I could use and started giving them out to the neighbors and friends, freezing zucchini noodles and shredded zucchini, I canned a few and the rest went into various zucchini recipes like this Summer Ratatouille.
I certainly didn’t mind making this ratatouille. It’s truly one of my favorite ways to enjoy summer squash, zucchini, tomatoes and eggplant. The combination of flavors combined with aromatics and fresh herbs makes this dish light and lush all at the same time.
It makes a lovely presentation and pairs beautifully with grilled meats, fish and poultry or doubles as a delicious vegetarian entrée. I could eat this alone with a glass of white wine and be completely happy. 🙂
Cheers to a delicious summer!
Loads of Love,
Karista
Summer Ratatouille
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small red onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh Italian parsley
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 ½ cups tomato sauce
- ¼ cup red wine
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1-2 zucchini, sliced thin, but not paper thin
- 1 yellow squash, sliced thin
- 4 Roma tomatoes, sliced
- 1 Japanese eggplant, sliced
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup grated parmesan
- ½ cup crème fraiche for garnish
- 9 or 10 - inch baking dish, either round, oval, square or rectangular
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 350F.
- In a skillet over medium heat, add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, but not smoking, add the onion and sauté until soft and wilted. Then add the garlic and sauté for one minute longer. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the tomato sauce, wine, thyme, parsley and smoked paprika.
- Pour the tomato mixture into the bottom of the baking dish. Beginning at one side of the baking dish, alternate slices of zucchini, yellow squash, roma tomato and eggplant until the baking dish is filled. I usually get about 3-4 rows of vegetables in my baking dish.
- Drizzle the vegetables with the 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and then the grated parmesan.
- Cover loosely with foil and place the baking dish in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes and then remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes. If you’d like the top a little toasted, I let the ratatouille sit under the broiler for a few minutes before I take it out of the oven.
- Remove the baking dish from the oven and let it cool for about 5-10 minutes. Serve warm with dollops of crème fraiche and extra grated parmesan.
Summer Ratatouille
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small red onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh Italian parsley
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 ½ cups tomato sauce
- ¼ cup red wine
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1-2 zucchini, sliced thin, but not paper thin
- 1 yellow squash, sliced thin
- 4 Roma tomatoes, sliced
- 1 Japanese eggplant, sliced
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup grated parmesan
- ½ cup crème fraiche for garnish
- 9 or 10 - inch baking dish, either round, oval, square or rectangular
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 350F.
- In a skillet over medium heat, add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, but not smoking, add the onion and sauté until soft and wilted. Then add the garlic and sauté for one minute longer. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the tomato sauce, wine, thyme, parsley and smoked paprika.
- Pour the tomato mixture into the bottom of the baking dish. Beginning at one side of the baking dish, alternate slices of zucchini, yellow squash, roma tomato and eggplant until the baking dish is filled. I usually get about 3-4 rows of vegetables in my baking dish.
- Drizzle the vegetables with the 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and then the grated parmesan.
- Cover loosely with foil and place the baking dish in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes and then remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes. If you’d like the top a little toasted, I let the ratatouille sit under the broiler for a few minutes before I take it out of the oven.
- Remove the baking dish from the oven and let it cool for about 5-10 minutes. Serve warm with dollops of crème fraiche and extra grated parmesan.
In step 2 you say add chives… was this supposed to be thyme?
Hi Amy, Yes! Thank you so much for catching this error. I just made the correction. I must have had chives on the brain when I was writing this. Thanks again for the catch and I hope you enjoyed the recipe! Karista
Fantastic. Love it!!! Easy to make too.
Thank you so much Shirley for your comment! I too adore this recipe and you’ve reminded me to make it this week! Happy Cooking, Karista