Ratatouille!

This Provencal-inspired Classic French Ratatouille recipe has all the summer veggie goodness going on with eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, potatoes and sweet bell peppers simmered to perfection in a lively tomato sauce.

It's THE dish to make with your summer vegetable garden abundance, after a trip to the farmer’s market with your kids or for a quick culinary escape to the south of France any time of year!

What do you need

eggplant

zucchini

ripe tomatoes,

red onions

Potatoes

bell peppers

olive oil

garlic

salt and pepper

herbs, such as oregano, thyme, basil

crushed tomatoes for the sauce

How to proceed

We will make this dish in four easy steps:

1. slice the vegetables

2. make the sauce

3. make the herb dressing

4. combine and bake

Start by slicing the vegetables evenly – slice an eggplant, one or two zucchini, two red onions, two potatoes and bell pepper.

Set them aside.

Next, we make the herb dressing by simply finely chopping the herbs, stirring them with olive oil and minced garlic. Then, we season it with salt and pepper and set it aside.

Preheat the oven to 200°C while you make the sauce.

To make the sauce, heat a large oven-proof skillet, add a drizzle of olive oil, diced onion, and pepper, and let sauté. Stir in minced garlic until fragrant, then season with salt and pepper, and add oregano and thyme.

Once the vegetables are softened, pour in the crushed tomatoes, and let cook for another 10 minutes for the flavors to combine. Lastly, stir in some finely chopped basil.

Once the sauce is done, arrange the sliced vegetables evenly on top starting by the outer edge of the pan, as shown in the pictures below.

Continue adding the vegetable slices in alternating patterns to the middle of the pan. Once arranged, season the vegetables with salt and pepper, and drizzle the herb dressing on top.

Cover the skillet with aluminuim foil or an oven-safe lid and transfer the skillet to the preheated oven.

Bake the ratatouille for about 40 minutes covered, then uncover the pan and bake for another 20 minutes, until the vegetables are softened and slightly charred.

Once baked, remove from the oven and serve hot.