Baked ratatouille

By klgettins

I must preface this post by explaining my SIX MONTH (!) absence. It’s not like I’ve been at home twiddling my thumbs in bed, watching reruns of Cheaters, eating cake pops, and sporting a permanent dark chocolate mustache. Although that would be pretty awesome. I’m going to use the most cliched of excuses and tell you that I’ve been busy. Extraordinarily busy. In a good way. Working, absorbing, and being a lot of tired. Lots of not knowing what the hell I am doing and in turn, experiencing the power of belief.

Ingredients

• 1 large eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 zucchini, halved and cut into rounds 1/2-inch thick
• 2 red or green bell peppers, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, brushed clean and quartered
• 1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1/3 cup tomato paste
• 1/3 cup red or white wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme (or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil or parsley

Details

Servings 1
Adapted from thegrizzlykitchen.com

Preparation

Step 1

Set your oven at 400 degrees F. Coat a large roasting pan (I used 9′ x 13′) with oil or butter.

To the roasting pan, add the eggplant, zucchini, peppers, mushrooms, and onions. In a small bowl, combine the tomato paste, vinegar, water, oil, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper and stir until blended and smooth. Add to the roasting pan, then stir and toss to combine and coat the vegetables evenly.

Bake until the vegetables begin to soften, about 30 minutes, stirring once at the halfway point. Reduce the heat to 325 degrees F. Cover the roasting pan and bake until the vegetables are soft and tender but not mushy, about 30 minutes longer, stirring every ten minutes.

Remove from the oven, uncover, and let stand for 10 minutes. Stir in the basil or parsley and serve hot, at room temperature or cold.