Ratatouille (better than the movie)

A recipe for ratatouille & the best ever marinara.

The Recipe

Ratatouille has been one of my favorite Disney movies since it came out when I was seven. I was so in love with the movie as a child that I carried around a toy rat named Remi in my purse. I became entranced by the gentle sauce, the vegetables that looked like pepperonis, and the idea that "anyone can cook."

This is my version of ratatouille.

This dish is great as a focal point of your meal, but should be served with a protein (I recommend Italian meatballs) and a grain (I did cheesy garlic bread). See the full meal below.

If you want to make this recipe, keep on reading.

The Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 can of San Marzano tomatoes

• 1 yellow onion, chopped

• Three tablespoons olive oil

• five garlic cloves, minced

• a handful of fresh basil

• 4 sprigs of fresh thyme

• 2 sprigs of fresh oregano

• 4 tomatoes

• 1 eggplant

• 1 yellow squash

• 1 zucchini

• salt

• black pepper

Instructions

1. On medium high in a stock pot, heat your olive oil. When the olive oil starts to shimmer, add your onion. Add a little salt and pepper to your onions and vigorously sauté until translucent in color.

2. Add your minced garlic to your onions and cook until fragrant.

3. Add can of tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Add four basil leaves, two sprigs of fresh thyme, and all the oregano. Keep simmering on medium-low heat until the tomatoes are completely heated through.

4. Using an immersion blender (or a regular blender/food processor), puree the sauce until there are no more large chunks and it's smooth.

5. Place the sauce back in the pot and continue to simmer on medium-low heat until the sauce becomes richer and the color is a deeper red instead of the orange color. The longer you let the sauce simmer, the deeper and more complex the flavors. I like to let mine simmer for at least two hours. If the sauce becomes too thick, add water or beef stock to thin it out.

6. After the sauce is done, salt and pepper to taste. We salt it after it's done cooking so the sauce doesn't reduce and get crazy salty.

7. Now we can get to the ratatouille itself.

8. Preheat your oven to 375.

9. Slice your tomatoes, zucchini, squash, and egg plant into 1/8 of an inch thickness. It's best to buy these veggies to be similar in circumference so they lay nicer. When you're slicing your eggplant, lay them on a tray lined with paper towels and then salt them lightly. Leave them there for 5 minutes and dab off the extra moisture with a paper towel. This is so they don't make your dish soupey.

10. Once all your vegetables are chopped, get a baking dish. I prefer to use an oval casserole dish, but you can use a 13x9 or cast iron, whatever works best for you.

11. Ladle some of your tasty marinara into the bottom of the dish, about 1 and a half cups worth.

12. Begin assembling your ratatouille. I usually create a pattern like tomato, squash, zucchini, eggplant, and then continue stacking them on top of each other and then laying them lengthwise in the pan. See pictures for reference.

13. Once they're in the pan, drizzle with olive oil and then salt and pepper. Top with fresh basil.

14. Bake in the oven covered for 30-40 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

15. Serve on top of more sauce and enjoy! You should have enough sauce to go with whatever protein you choose to make.