Layered Ratatouille

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Layered Ratatouille
Recipe type: Main Dish
 
This recipe comes from Denise Clemons, Food Writer for The Cape Gazette in Delaware and was demonstrated at the Lewes Farmers Market (www.historiclewesfarmersmarket.org). This is how she makes the ratatouille recipe created for the film Ratatouille by Thomas Keller of French Laundry. Unlike the traditional blend of summer vegetables that are cut into chunks and sautéed, Denise's version uses a mandoline to slice the vegetables into thin rounds before they are arranged in a baking dish over a tomato pipérade.
Ingredients
  • PIPÉRADE
  • ½ red pepper
  • ½ yellow pepper
  • ½ orange pepper
  • 2 T olive oil
  • 1 t minced garlic
  • ½ C finely diced onion
  • 3 tomatoes
  • 1 sprig basil
  • 1 sprig parsley
  • ½ bay leaf
  • Salt, to taste
  • VEGETABLES
  • 1 zucchini, thinly sliced
  • 1 Japanese eggplant, thinly sliced
  • 1 yellow squash, thinly sliced
  • 4 tomatoes, thinly sliced
  • ½ t minced garlic
  • 2 t olive oil
  • ⅛ t thyme leaves
  • salt and pepper
  • VINAIGRETTE
  • 1 T olive oil
  • 1 t balsamic vinegar
  • 1 t fresh herbs (thyme, chervil)
  • Salt and pepper
  • Chives for garnish
Instructions
  1. PIPÉRADE: Heat oven to 475 F. 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 peel and chop finely. Combine with onion with oil and garlic in medium skillet. Cook over low heat on stovetop until very soft but not browned, about 10 minutes. Peel, seed and finely dice the tomatoes, reserving juices. Add tomatoes, juices, basil, parsley and bay leaf to skillet. Simmer over low heat until very soft, about 10 minutes. Add peppers and simmer another 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and discard herb sprigs. Reserve 1 T of mixture and spread remainder in bottom of an 8-inch ovenproof skillet or baking dish.
  2. ASSEMBLY: Heat oven to 275 F. In center of baking pan over pipérade, arrange 8 alternating slices of vegetables, 2 each of zucchini, eggplant, squash and tomatoes, overlapping in a circle, exposing ¼ inch of each slice. Continue alternating and overlapping vegetables in a close spiral, mounding slightly in center, until pan is filled (all vegetables may not be needed). Mix garlic, oil and thyme leaves in bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle over vegetables. Cover skillet with foil and seal tightly. Bake for 2 hours; uncover and bake for 30 minutes more.
  3. Serve: Combine reserved pipérade, oil, vinegar, herbs, salt and pepper to taste in a bowl; set aside until ready to serve. When vegetables are baked, cut into four quarters and carefully lift each wedge onto a plate with a spatula. Turn spatula 90 degrees, spreading layers into a fan shape. Drizzle vinaigrette and garnish with chive sprig.
  4. (Serves 4)