Rain + Ratatouille

Last Christmas, my dear Mom got me a gorgeous cookbook by Sophie Dahl, Ms. Dahl's Voluptuous Delights, and I've been obsessed with it ever since. Today was the kind of foggy, drizzly, gray day that's just perfect for slowly putting together a delicious ratatouille. I'm copying the recipe below so you can make it at home, too!

Rinse, cube and salt the zucchini; let sit for an hour.

Heat the olive oil.

Add the onion and garlic.

Then add the bell peppers.

Then the tomatoes...

I added a little white wine to mine, because what doesn't wine make better??

I didn't have any eggplant, so I just used zucchini. Don't forget to brown it first.

Rinse the cilantro.

Garnish and enjoy!

I made this hours ago, and my apartment still smells amazing.

Warm ratatouille (by Sohpie Dahl)

Serves 4

2 eggplants, cubed

2 zucchini, cubed

4 tablespoons or so of olive oil

2 onions, finely sliced

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped

1/2 teaspoon of crushed coriander seeds

2 red bell peppers, deseeded and thickly chopped

4 large tomatoes, peeled, quartered and deseeded or a 14 1/2 oz can of peeled tomatoes

Salt and pepper

A huge handful of fresh cilantro, chopped

Sprinkle the eggplant and zucchini with a bit of salt, pop them in a colander for an hour or so, then rinse them and pat them dry. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a frying pan and brown the vegetables on each side. When this is done, set them aside.

In a big heavy pan or casserole, heat the rest of the oil and add to it the onions, garlic and crushed coriander seeds, and simmer on low for another 10 minutes. Pour in the tomatoes and keep at low for another 15 minutes. Lastly, add the browned zucchini and eggplant and season.

Serve warm with lashings of chopped cilantro.