Ratatouille Casserole
Ratatouille, a classic end of summer dish from the South of France that features our favorite late-season produce, takes on a new form in this beautiful spiraled casserole. Instead of cooking the ratatouille on the stovetop, enjoy it right out of the oven, or you can bake the dish ahead of time and let the ingredients mingle in the refrigerator overnight for even more flavor. Serve with a French dessert at the end to round out a memorable meal, like our clafoutis or apple tart.
For the prettiest look, select zucchini with the same diameter as the Roma tomatoes. Italian eggplant, however, has a much thicker diameter than either, so you can cut each round in half and arrange in the dish with the skin side up. If you have access to skinnier Japanese or Chinese eggplants, you can use those instead of the Italian version.
dry white wine
tomato paste
diced roasted red bell peppers
chopped fresh basil leaves
cloves garlic, thinly sliced
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
medium Roma tomatoes (about 3/4 lb. total), thinly sliced
large zucchini (about 12 oz.), thinly sliced
small globe eggplant (about 12 oz.), halved lengthwise, thinly sliced into half moons
extra-virgin olive oil
roughly chopped fresh thyme leaves
- Preheat oven to 425º. In a shallow 2-quart baking dish, whisk wine and tomato paste until smooth and combined. Add bell pepper, basil, garlic, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Toss to combine and spread in an even layer.
- Stack 1 tomato slice, 1 zucchini slice, and 1 eggplant slice and vertically stack along edge of baking dish, with eggplant skin side facing up. Repeat with remaining tomato, zucchini, and eggplant slices, creating a spiral in baking dish.
- Drizzle vegetables with oil and sprinkle with thyme; season with 3/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper.
- Cover baking dish with foil and bake until vegetables are just starting to turn tender and juices are bubbling, about 30 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake until vegetables are knife-tender, about 30 minutes more. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.
- Make Ahead: Ratatouille can be baked 1 day ahead. Cover pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
