Ratatouille

I made ratatouille out of the fruits of my labour:
Here is what you will need:

1 onion, sliced into thin rings
3 cloves garlic, minced
1  medium eggplant, sliced
2 zucchini, sliced
2 Medium yellow squash, sliced
4 Roma (plum) tomatoes, sliced
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
4 sprigs fresh thyme
Salt and pepper to taste

How to:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large casserole dish, pour 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil. Place the sliced tomatoes and parsley in the dish, spread the minced garlic on top, then add the sliced onion.

Trim the ends off the eggplant, zucchini, and yellow squash, using your mandolin, carefully slice the eggplant, zucchini and yellow squash very thin.

Arrange the sliced vegetables over the tomato, onions, and garlic in the dish, alternating vegetables and overlapping them so just a smidgen of each flat surface is visible. Drizzle the remaining tablespoon of olive oil over the vegetables and season them generously with salt and pepper. Cover the dish with a piece of parchment paper cut to fit inside.

Bake for approximately 45 to 55 minutes, until vegetables have released their liquid and are clearly cooked but with some structure left so they are not totally limp. They should not be brown at the edges, and you should see the tomato sauce bubbling up around them.

Ratatouille can be served alone, or with a dab of soft goat cheese on top, or with some crusty French bread. Serve as a main course or on a small plate as an appetizer.

I trust you will find, as I again did the other day, that this makes for a great hearty vegetarian dish!