Ratatouille

Ok, so this one I made yesterday. I got the recipe online ( from "The New York Times") and it's the same recipe that is used in the animation ("Ratatouille"). I absolutely fell in love with this movie and couldn't take that dish out of my head. My husband bought the Art book about the animation and I was reading it when I saw the picture of ratatouille. Then I decided that that would be dinner for the night.
It worked, but it took me about 2 1/2 hours to prepare it. I guess it's because I didn't pay so much attention to the recipe when I first read it and sliced the peppers before taking them into the oven.

TIP: to prepare the "piperade", you will need yellow, red and orange peppers. You have to take them to the oven to be able to peel their skin. In the recipe, it says to leave them there for 15 minutes or until the skin starts to loose. I didn't wrap them in foil (because I was out of foil) and left them there for 15 min. Don't do it: if you're not using the foil, forget about the time and keep your eyes on the peppers. When you see the skin starting to get loose, then you take the peppers out. I made the mistake of slicing them before taking them to the oven: that doubled my work when I had to peel them. So, just put the complete half in the oven and slice after you peel them.

RATATOUILLE

FOR PIPERADE

1/2 red pepper, seeds and ribs removed

1/2 yellow pepper, seeds and ribs removed

1/2 orange pepper, seeds and ribs removed

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 cup finely diced yellow onion

3 tomatoes (about 12 ounces total weight), peeled, seeded, and finely diced, juices reserved

1 sprig thyme

1 sprig flat-leaf parsley

1/2 a bay leaf

Kosher salt

FOR VEGETABLES

1 zucchini (4 to 5 ounces) sliced in 1/16-inch rounds 1 Japanese eggplant, (4 to 5 ounces) sliced into 1/16-inch rounds 1 yellow squash (4 to 5 ounces) sliced into 1/16-inch rounds 4 Roma tomatoes, sliced into 1/16-inch rounds 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic 2 teaspoons olive oil 1/8teaspoon thyme leaves Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

FOR VINAIGRETTE

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oi

1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Assorted fresh herbs (thyme flowers, chervil, thyme)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

1. For piperade, heat oven to 450 degrees. Place pepper halves on a foil-lined sheet, cut side down. Roast until skin loosens, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest until cool enough to handle. Peel and chop finely.

2. Combine oil, garlic, and onion in medium skillet over low heat until very soft but not browned, about 8 minutes. Add tomatoes, their juices, thyme, parsley, and bay leaf. Simmer over low heat until very soft and very little liquid remains, about 10 minutes, do not brown; add peppers and simmer to soften them. Season to taste with salt, and discard herbs. Reserve tablespoon of mixture and spread remainder in bottom of an 8-inch skillet.

3. For vegetables, heat oven to 275 degrees. Down center of pan, arrange a strip of 8 alternating slices of vegetables over piperade, overlapping so that 1/4 inch of each slice is exposed. Around the center strip, overlap vegetables in a close spiral that lets slices mound slightly toward center. Repeat until pan is filled; all vegetables may not be needed.

4. Mix garlic, oil, and thyme leaves in bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle over vegetables. Cover pan with foil and crimp edges to seal well. Bake until vegetables are tender when tested with a paring knife, about 2 hours. Uncover and bake for 30 minutes more. (Lightly cover with foil if it starts to brown.) If there is excess liquid in pan, place over medium heat on stove until reduced. (At this point it may be cooled, covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Serve cold or reheat in 350-degree oven until warm.)

5. For vinaigrette, combine reserved piperade, oil, vinegar, herbs, and salt and pepper to taste in a bowl.

6. To serve, heat broiler and place byaldi underneath until lightly browned. Slice in quarters and very carefully lift onto plate with offset spatula. Turn spatula 90 degrees, guiding byaldi into fan shape. Drizzle vinaigrette around plate. Serve hot.

Yield: 4 servings