Ratatouille

Ratatouille takes a little time to put together, but is well worth the effort.  To begin, prepare all your vegetables, except for the eggplant (it will oxidize quickly) before you get started.  

In a small bowl, mash the tomato paste and flour together until they turn into a thick paste and set aside.  This will become the thickener for your stew later.

Heat a large saute pan (5 quart if you have it) on medium-high heat and add olive oil.  When the oil is hot, add the onions and garlic.  Cook on medium heat for a few minutes, stirring frequently to avoid sticking or browning.  Remember that garlic will cook and caramelize quickly, and you don't really want that flavor in your ratatouille.

While that onion and garlic are cooking, go ahead and cut up your eggplant, as you will be adding it next.

Add the zucchini and bell pepper and stir.  Add carrot, eggplant and tomatoes and stir.  

Add the torn sweet basil leaves, the thyme and rosemary and mix thoroughly.

Add the tomato paste mixture and stir until the paste mixture melts and coats vegetables.  

Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer over medium heat, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 20-25 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and the flavors have all married.  Stir regularly to avoid sticking.  Taste for seasoning and add as needed and enjoy either as a main on its own, or with a protein such as chicken or fish.  Mashed potatoes pair particularly nicely with this dish, as well!

Once cooked, go ahead and fish out whatever's left of the sprigs of rosemary if you can find them--they're not going to hurt anyone, but they're not terribly pleasant to chomp down on!

*A word on salt and pepper:  Ratatouille should be a celebration of vegetables at the peak of their ripe yumminess.  I always have to add some salt to it, but saltiness in this dish is very much a matter of taste.  Start by adding a generous pinch of salt and a couple of shakes of white pepper at this point in the cook.  Stir and simmer for maybe 10 minutes--just until it starts to break down a little--taste and see if you think it needs more seasoning and add as necessary.

**Ratatouille is a rich, complex dish bursting with rich flavors of herbs and vegetables.  I would pair a lovely, earthy red wine like Syrah.  I might even try a Merlot with this dish.  It's got a fair amount of acid in it because of the tomatoes, so it can handle an earthy, deep red wine.  That having been said, on a nice, warm summer evening, I could also see this dish being paired with a nicely chilled rose.  Picayune Cellers in Calistoga makes a great one in the French style, Hay Penny, which would be lovely with this ratatouille!