Roasted Late Summer Vegetables

     Foggy summer days here in the Bay Area make it easy to enjoy this versatile dish.  It takes a bit of oven time, and you will want to bake it early in the day in any case to allow the flavors to develop before serving.

     I make this, and countless variations, throughout summer.  The addition of little potatoes to classic ratatouille ingredients adds body and a bit of crunch to the mix.  Hot or at room temperature, the dish is delicious in every way.  It’s a perfect accompaniment to pretty much anything.

     You may already know Paula Wolfert’s well-deserved reputation as an award-winning cookbook author.  Paula lives in Sonoma and is currently working on a project, UNFORGETTABLE:  Bold Flavors from a Renegade Life with Berkeley food writer, Emily Kaiser Thelin and a host of other Bay Area talent in graphics and photography.  The upcoming book is an extremely personal project as it will chronicle 50 of Paula’s favorite dishes, written now while her mind can release the delicious stories it holds before they are eventually lost to her battle with Alzheimer’s.

     Look for the upcoming book later this year, with presales being offered soon.

Roasted Late Summer Vegetables

Recipe adapted from Paula Wolfert, Mediterranean Clay Pot Cooking

Makes one 2-quart baking dish – (Recipe doubles easily!)

Ingredients

• 2 tomatoes, large; cut into 1/ 2” slices
• 2 eggplants, medium; or 1 large. Cut into 1” wedges.
• 2 zucchini, cut into 1/ 2” slices
• Course sea salt
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 4 baby Yukon Gold potatoes
• 1 small bulb fresh fennel, cut into 1/ 4“ slices
• 1/ 2 cup red onion, cut into 1/ 4” slices
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/ 2 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
• 1/ 2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 1/ 4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 tablespoon fresh mint, chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.  Lay the tomato, zucchini and eggplant pieces on a sheet of parchment paper or in a sheet pan and salt them lightly.  Let stand for 10-15 minutes.  Pat dry with clean paper towels.
2. Brush the baking dish with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil.  Spread half of the tomatoes, zucchini and eggplant pieces evenly on the bottom of the dish.  Scatter the potatoes, onion, and fennel on top.  Lay the remaining tomatoes, zucchini and eggplant over these vegetables.  Sprinkle with the garlic, 1/ 2 teaspoon of salt, black pepper, parsley and mint.  Drizzle the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil over all.
3. Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and stir carefully to redistribute the vegetables.  Return to the oven and bake an additional 30 minutes.  Turn off the oven heat and let the vegetables bake without disturbing for 15 minutes longer.
4. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

Cook’s notes:  If you like a bit of spicy heat, add sliced hot peppers or dried hot chile flakes to taste.  I’ve also added a few teaspoons of additional minced fresh herbs such as marjoram and thyme in the mix, to delicious effect; but take care to not overwhelm the fresh flavors of these summer vegetables.