#basalmic

Pan Roasted Ratatouille tastes like early summer

An easy 15 minute recipe -- the veggies do almost all the work

Use your freshest, best early summer veggies for this--get thee to a farmer’s market if you do not have a garden!

Slice one small Chinese eggplant and a zucchini that is about the same size into coins.

Cut a sweet Vidalia onion into bite size pieces,

Cut 8 button or cremini mushrooms into quarters

Cut 4 Campari tomatoes into quarters (or any small, sweet, fleshy tomato. Paste tomatoes should be fine)

Add cut veggies to a large lightly oiled grill pan or iron skillet. (I like a light flavored olive oil.) Toss everything to coat with oil. Spread things out so they are not too crowded. Put over campfire or under broiler on high heat, stirring about every 3 minutes. (I did mine in toaster oven). Meanwhile, prep the peppers, see instructions below.

Cook the zukes/eggplants&etc. until most things are lightly caramelized -- about 12 minutes -- pull it out before things burn.

Add minced garlic (dried/granulated is ok) and balsamic syrup, toss to coat everything, return to heat 1 min, stir, return to heat 1 min.

if things are too soupy, boil off some of the juices. The sauce should be a sticky glaze-like coating. Adding onion powder and granulated garlic can help to thicken it. Set the pan on a counter to cool for a moment.

Meanwhile, cut a sweet red bell pepper in half, remove seeds, lay down flat with skin side up on a seperate roasting pan. Roast until the skin blackens, then pull out and cover with a lid, let cool. After they are cool enough to handle, peel and chop into bite sized pieces. The blackened skin should practically fall off. add the chopped peppers to everything else.

Stir everything together, add shreds of fresh basil, (or thyme, rosemary, etc.)

Put in serving bowl, sprinkle with a little crumbly, salty cheese (a blend of parmesan and mozzarella is good)(optional: sprinkle with crushed red pepper flakes)

 Serve.

(Optional, toss with cooked pasta, or put on toasted bread, or on a pizza, or on top of breaded fried eggplant slices.)

This makes about two servings—if serving more people, adjust quantities.

I stole this one from a friend, but I really enjoyed it, so here's my take.

Started with a top round steak, but hanger steak works good too. You don't need a super fancy cut. I coat it in olive oil, pepper and salt. Kept the seasoning simple. But you can add garlic if you enjoy that. Start cooking the steak what ever way you prefer, but I did mine in my cast iron skillet. Plan your cook time to get to the temp you prefer.

Take about 1/2 a cup to 3/4 a cup of basalmic vinegar. Seems to be about 1/3 of a cup per steak was the right amount. Now this is your choice. You can start cooking this in a separate pan or you can wait until the steak is done. I didn't want to let my steak cool too much, so I did a separate pan. Bring it to a boil and then let simmer until it's about half done. You can add a 1/2 teaspoon of salt and pepper for each 1/3 cup of basalmic vinegar if you desire. Once the steak is done, let it rest a minute or two on a clean cutting board and then slice. Place the steak on the plate. Take the drippings from the steak and add to the basalmic vinegar. Remove from heat and pour over the steak.

I served my with cooked yellow squash and simple pasta with butter and cheese.