Makes 6-8 cups
INGREDIENTS:
- 2-3 medium large onions, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 large red or green pepper, deseeded and diced
- 1 medium zucchini, diced
- 1 medium yellow squash, diced
- 2-3 large ripe tomatoes, chopped
- 1 small-medium eggplant, diced just before cooking
- olive oil for sauteing
- fresh chopped basil (optional)
- salt to taste
PROCEDURE:
Cut up 2 or 3 onions, deseed and dice 1 large red pepper, dice 1 yellow squash, 1 zucchini, mince 2-3 cloves of garlic, chop up 2-3 large ripe tomatoes. (it's up to you just how small or big you want the pieces to be obviously, the bigger they are, the less time spent chopping but also the larger they are, the longer they'll take to cook.) Make sure the pot that you're using is big enough to eventually hold all of the vegetables and add a splash of olive oil and the diced onions.
After the onions have cooked on medium high heat for 3-4 minutes, add the garlic and let those cook for a minute or two then, because the peppers will take the next longest amount of time to cook, add those next.
A great way to use up an abundance of summer veggies!
Let the peppers soften up for 3-4 minutes and then add the zucchini and yellow squash and stir that in and, once that's going, take a minute to dice the eggplant so you can add that right away without giving the oxygen a chance to change the color of the eggplant.
Add the eggplant and stir that in and add a little more olive oil and let the eggplant cook for 4 or 5 minutes before you add the chopped tomatoes. Once those are in, stir them around and turn the heat down a little bit and let it cook for another 15-20 minutes so the flavors really have a chance to come together.
You want the vegetables to be fairly soft but not mushy and, if it seems like the veggies are getting too thick before it's done, add a splash of vegetable stock or white wine and I like to add a good handful of fresh chopped basil to finish and a good pinch of salt.
HINTS:
Serve warm or cold alongside any simply cooked meat or fish or simply tossed with pasta and parmesan cheese. Substitute canned tomatoes if you like.