Garden Ratatouille Casserole

Nearly everyone is familiar with ratatouille due to that adorable Disney movie, but this classic garden ratatouille casserole dish is perfect for enjoying that bountiful summer garden harvest, or for a delicious side dish served with grilled beef, chicken or pork.

The trick to this dish cooking evenly is ensuring that the slices are even. The easiest way to cut the slices is with a mandolin slicer. It works great to keep the pieces uniform, even the bell peppers.

Garden Ratatouille Casserole

You’ll Need:
1 six-ounce can tomato paste
1/2 onion, chopped
2-3 tablespoons minced garlic
4 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
3/4 cup water
1 small eggplant, thinly sliced
1 zucchini, thinly sliced
1 yellow squash, thinly sliced
2 bell peppers, thinly sliced
3 torn basil leaves or 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Heat a skillet over medium heat, when the pan is hot add 1 tbs olive oil, when the oil is hot add the onion and saute until it’s translucent. Add the garlic and sauté for about 1 minute, Remove from the heat and set aside.

Get a 10×10-inch dutch oven baking dish and lightly grease with cooking spray. Combine tomato paste, sautéed onion and garlic, water, and one tablespoon of olive oil together in a bowl, mixing well. Season to your taste preferences with salt and pepper to taste ( I used 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper) then spread this mixture along the bottom of the dish.

Lightly coat the sliced vegetables in a bit of olive oil. Arrange the veggies in the dish, as pictured, begin along the outer edge of your baking dish and working towards the center, alternating them for the best appearance (and to allow the flavors to marry in the oven!)

When the vegetables have been placed, drizzle a bit of olive oil over the vegetables, season again with salt and pepper to taste. Then, sprinkle the top with thyme leaves or chopped fresh basil leaves.

Cut a small circle of parchment paper and cover the vegetables in the dish to prevent over-browning during cooking.

Bake until the vegetables are tender and fully roasted, about 45 minutes.

** Eggplant Tip- when eggplant cooks it has a tendency to become soggy. To avoid this, lightly salt each side of the eggplant slices and allow them to rest for about 20 minutes prior to adding them. This helps draw out excess moisture.

canstock photo vankad

Garden Ratatouille Casserole

Article or recipe authorAuthor: Melissa 'Liss' Burnell

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preparation timePrep 25 minutes mins

cook timeCook 45 minutes mins

total timeTotal 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

This colorful vegetable casserole layers eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, and bell peppers over a savory tomato-onion base for a simple summer side dish. Estimated total batch cost is $7.35, or about $1.23 per serving for 6 servings, and it’s best served hot alongside grilled beef, chicken, pork, or crusty bread.

ServingsServings 6 servings

CourseCourse bread, Dinner, Main Course, Side Dish

CuisineCuisine French

Budget101 Price BreakdownApprox Cost: $7.35

Ingredients

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• ▢ 1 6- ounce can tomato paste
• ▢ ½ yellow onion chopped
• ▢ 2 to 3 tablespoons minced garlic
• ▢ 4 tablespoons olive oil divided
• ▢ ¾ cup water
• ▢ 1 small eggplant thinly sliced
• ▢ 1 zucchini thinly sliced
• ▢ 1 yellow squash thinly sliced
• ▢ 2 bell peppers thinly sliced
• ▢ 3 torn basil leaves or 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• ▢ Salt to taste
• ▢ Black pepper to taste
• ▢ Cooking spray for greasing dish

Equipment

10x10-inch baking dish or Dutch oven baking dish

Large Skillet

Mixing Bowl

Knife

Cutting Board

Mandolin slicer (optional)

parchment paper

Instructions

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1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and sauté the chopped onion until translucent.
3. Add the minced garlic and sauté for about 1 minute. Remove from the heat and set aside.
4. Lightly grease a 10x10-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
5. In a bowl, combine tomato paste, sautéed onion and garlic, water, and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then spread the mixture along the bottom of the dish.
6. Lightly coat the sliced eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, and bell peppers with the remaining olive oil.
7. Arrange the vegetables in the dish, starting around the outer edge and working toward the center, alternating the vegetables.
8. Drizzle the top with the remaining olive oil, season again with salt and pepper, and sprinkle with basil leaves or fresh thyme.
9. Cut a small circle of parchment paper and place it over the vegetables.
10. Bake about 45 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and fully roasted.

Recipe Size Alteration

💡 If you altered the ingredients above by doubling or tripling the recipe, you may also need to change the pan/dish size and adjust the cook time.

Notes

Estimated yield is 6 side-dish servings.
Prep time is an estimate based on chopping, slicing, sautéing, and arranging the vegetables.
Salting the eggplant slices and letting them rest for 20 minutes before baking can help reduce excess moisture.
Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months for best quality.

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