Ratatouille

On Saturday night, after a day of roaming around Camden Market I decided to use the bounty of my market trip (lots of fresh veggies) to make a batch of hot, spicy, delicious ratatouille.  Not only is Ratatouille one of the best animated movies ever made, it is also one of the best vegetable stews around.  The ingredients vary from attempt to attempt- originally ratatouille was a dish favored by French peasants, who essentially stewed together the contents of their gardens with some spice to add variety.  I follow the same theory, adding what ever vegetables are available and fresh.  But, here is a basic recipe to build from:

Ratatouille

olive oil

3 cloves garlic

1 red or yellow onion (large)

2 large zucchini (called courgettes in the UK)

1 yellow zucchini

1 eggplant (aubergine in the UK)

6-8 tomatoes

1 hot pepper

large bunch of basil

lemon juice

rosemary

thyme

3 bay leaves

1 can anchovies

salt

1. Mince garlic, and heat with olive oil in a large wok or soup pot over medium heat until you begin to smell it.

2. Slice onion into half rings (rings cut in half), and add to garlic and olive oil.  Allow to cook for 2-3 minutes

3. Slice zucchini and yellow zucchini into thin rounds and add to the mixture cooking.  Also loosely dice the eggplant, and add. Cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring every few seconds

4. Take the stems out of the tomatoes, then break the tomatoes into chunky pieces using your hands, adding to the mixture while you go along.

5. Cut anchovies into 1 cm pieces, and add to the mixture.

6. Dice hot pepper, and add.

7. Juice one lemon, and add.

8. Add bay leaves and other spices, mixing well

9.  Let simmer on low heat until the tomatoes break down, and it begins to look more like chunky stew.  About 25 minutes.

10. Turn off the heat and stir in the basil.

11. Serve with yummy crusty bread