Ratatouille

Yes, I saw the movie! I loved it. I thought it was so much fun. I liked the family dynamic of the rat colony, and how the skinny redheaded kid gained confidence and built character… and, Gusteau was so cute, and what a great motto – Anyone can cook!

I’d found this recipe even before I saw the movie, and afterwards I was inspired to try it. Now is the perfect time of year, when eggplant, zucchini, and fresh herbs are plentiful at the farmer’s market – I’ve been trying to go once a week this summer, and it’s been really fun to get such fresh yummy veggies that are all local and mostly organic. Very cool. I highly recommend this recipe – especially if you’ve tried making ratatouille in the classic simmer/saute method before. I have, and it was nothing to write home about. But this one’s a keeper! It’s really easy, too. The only trick is cutting the veggies as thin as you can. And, it’s flexible. My veg slices weren’t all the same diameter, so I just layered them in rows (or rounds, as in this pie dish) and it looked great. I like to eat pretty food, especially if it’s not a lot of work to make it look pretty. That’s the nice thing about cooking with lots of vegetables – it’s effortless to make it colorful. This recipe calls for goat cheese, but we used sour cream instead. Something about that creamy finishing touch, mmm – magnifique!