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I guess I’ve talked to excess about ratatouille here and ratatouille here and ratoutille here. Oh, and ratatouille here.

So I decided it’s time to post a ratatoutille recipe. Following is the one that I wrote for the Lawrence Farmers Market. Hope you enjoy it.

Ratatouille is a perfect dish for August in that it uses lots of produce that’s in season right now. Ratatouille is one of those dishes that has infinite variations, but all seem to have eggplant, peppers, squash and tomatoes at their center.

Ratatouille is good hot, cold and at room temperature. It’s good alone, over pasta or rice, or as a side dish with meat or chicken.

Ratatouille

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 bell peppers (1 red and 1 green is nice), cored and cut into chunks
• 1 small hot pepper, minced (optional)
• 2 pounds fresh tomatoes (see notes)
• 1 small cucumber, peeled and diced (optional)
• 2 (6-inch) zucchini or yellow summer squash cut lengthwise then crosswise in 1/2-inch slices
• 1 medium eggplant, cut in 1-inch cubes
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Fresh parsley, basil, thyme (optional; I usually skip)

1. Heat oil in large, heavy pot. Add onion and garlic. Cook over medium heat 3 minutes.

2. Add bell peppers, hot pepper, tomatoes and cucumber. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes. If necessary, add a little water or more oil to keep from sticking.

3. Add squash, eggplant, salt, pepper and herbs (in a bundle or chopped) if desired. Cover and simmer at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until all vegetables are tender and flavors are blended. Makes six servings.

Notes: Any kind of tomatoes works, although Roma types break down better. If using Romas, trim the stem and throw them in whole then fish the skins out of the pot later—or skin them first if you prefer. For other tomatoes, simply dice and add to pot. You may substitute canned tomatoes if desired. I like using 1 can diced tomatoes and 1 can crushed.

News flash

I finally got a digital camera! Yea! Now I just need to learn how to use it. I’m hoping that you’ll soon be seeing lovely photos shot by moi. No doubt you’re as excited as I am. Or not. :-)