Ratatouille (Updated)

This is a recipe we do quite frequently when we want something light but satisfying. We had tried ratatouille once before but it tasted really bland, and it was disappointing to say the least, especially after we watched Pixar's film of the same name.  We wanted to create something worthy of its significance in the film, and had hoped it would create itself somewhat.

I hated vegetables for a long time. Zucchinis were scorned, and eggplants were simply out of the question. I'm glad to say my tastes have broadened since I was younger. I'd hate to think what I'd be missing out on if I hadn't developed somewhat! It's very easy to destroy vegetables and turn them into mush, especially if you're boiling them. I'm always satisfied making this dish, both in the construction and when eating it. It's one of the simplest main courses in our arsenal, but it goes a long way. It's warm and comforting and tastes richer than you'd expect for the simplicity of the ingredients.

This is one of those recipes that looks like so much less than it is. Solaris got it through a work colleague and after several weeks, finally convinced me to give it a try.  It was this battered black-and-white photocopy from an economical meals cookbook and I just thought 'Ugh. It has so little spice and so little... anything. How is this going to be any good?' Thank goodness I was wrong! This is now one of our favorite recipes, and easily one of Solaris' signature meals.

Ratatouille

Servings: 6-8

2 tbsp olive oil

2 red onions, chopped

2 red peppers, chopped

1 eggplant/aubergine, cubed

2 corgettes/zucchini, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tins chopped tomato

½ tsp dried oregano

Basil to taste (small bunch?)

75 grams cheese, grated or shredded

 1. Preheat oven to 200 C

 2. Chop all vegetables.

 3.Pour oil into large sauté pan, and fry onions, aubergine, peppers, courgettes, and garlic for 10 minutes.

 4. Add chopped tomatoes and cook for 5-10 minutes. (Cooking time is optional. Otherwise, proceed to step 5.)

 5. Add oregano and basil. Add salt and pepper if needed.

 6. Simmer for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened.

 7.Spoon mixture into pre-oiled baking dish, and top with shredded cheese.

 8. Cover and bake 15/20 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Chefs' notes: And that's it! For the chopped tomatoes, we often use a big jar of passata; it ends up being about 800g total, I think. The number of servings depends on how hungry you are, and you can always add more of anything, especially cheese (we use lactose-free cheese, but anything goes- you can even make this a vegan dish). Generally I can eat more than we serve but it's also really nice to reheat. There aren't many vegetable-based meals that reheat well, but this always retains its flavour and consistency.

The nice thing about ratatouille is that you can serve it with almost anything. It goes with crusty bread, pasta, noodles, rice, spelt... I think we've served it with all of these before. If you're looking for something a little less vegetarian, we have also served it with roast chicken.

I hope Anton Ego would approve.

Our regular meal - roast chicken, ratatouille, and egg noodles with or without broccoli

Vegan Peanut Butter Brownies

Whenever we have Solaris' extended family over, multiple food allergies must be taken into account for the menus.  We have his mother who is allergic to some type of beans, his older sister and uncle who are gluten intolerant, and then my own lactose intolerance too.  After a few years of this, the menu has become some what of a pattern - there are really only 2-3 different items and they just revolve as each year or so goes by.

Now as you'll probably have guessed by now, neither Solaris nor myself are ones for conformity or complacency. We love the tried-and-true comfort foods, but we also love to experiment and find new favorites. Fortunately for us (and our families), recently we found Emily Mainquist's Sweet Vegan and took this weekend as an opportunity to try out a recipe and see how it went.

The following is a slightly modified version of Emily's dairy-free, vegan brownies. These are NOT gluten free but can be made so with a flour substitution. Try them out - we're serious. They are absolutely gorgeous!

Vegan Peanut Butter Brownies

Serves 9-12

260 grams unbleached plain flour (or rice or spelt flour for Celiac sufferers)
340 grams unrefined cane sugar
25-50 grams cocoa powder (dependent on preference - 25 is a good base and 50 is quite strong)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup water
1 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
65 grams natural unsweetened peanut butter
90 grams dairy-free and gluten-free chocolate chips (or chopped bakers chocolate)



1. Preheat oven to 180 C/ 350 F and lightly grease a baking tin or line with bakers' parchment.

2. Combine flour, cane sugar, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. (You may need to use a pastry cutter to work the sugar into the flour.) Add the water, oil, and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Pour into the pre-greased pan.

3. In a double boiler or glass bowl over a warm pan of water, melt the chocolate chips.

4. If you have an all natural, very runny peanut butter, spoon the peanut butter into each corner and the centre of the brownie mix.  If you have a thicker peanut butter, thoroughly mix it with the warm, melted chocolate, and pour it over the brownies.

5. Using a table knife or spatula, swirl the peanut butter into the brownie until the mixture has a marbled appearance. If you have used runnier peanut butter and still have the melted chocolate, drizzle this over the brownie mixture.

6. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out MOSTLY clean. Cool completely before cutting. This is a very moist brownie, so I'm afraid cutting it neatly it easier said than done!