Ratatouille and Chickpea Salad with Feta

My first introduction to ratatouille was the children’s film of the same name. My son found a recipe for a version layering sliced eggplant, tomatoes, and zucchini. The result was actually quite lovey both in taste and visual appeal.

This version is based on Mark Bittman’s recipe from his book How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, (On a side note – this is a much used and well loved cookbook in our house – one of my favorite recipes is the falafel recipe.) The ordinal recipe is lovely as is – but to make it more of a meal – I’ve added bell peppers, cooked chickpeas and feta cheese. The beauty of this dish is that the veggies still have texture and are not overcooked/mushy – so be sure to have everything prepped and ready to go.

Ingredients

• 1 medium or 2 small eggplants (about 8 oz)
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and fresh ground black pepper
• 1 medium zucchini, roughly chopped
• 1 medium bell pepper (I used red – but any color would do), roughly chopped
• 1 small onion, roughly chopped
• 1 Tbsp minced garlic
• 1 medium tomato, cored and roughly chopped
• 1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves
• 1 cup cooked chickpeas
• 1-2 Tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1/4 – 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1/4 cup minced parsley leaves for garnish

Method

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1. Trim eggplant, cut into roughly 1 inch cubes. If very large, too soft, or extremely seedy, place eggplant into a colander and sprinkle with some salt. Let drain about 30-45 mins. Rinse, drain and pat dry. Set aside. (I also remove seeds if too seedy).
2. Heat 2 Tbsp oil in a large skillet or frying pan over medium heat. Once oil is hot, add eggplant, season with salt and pepper to your taste (mind how much salt if you salted the eggplant in the first step). Cook eggplant, stirring occasionally until soft and golden. This should take about 10 mins or so. Remove from the pan and drain eggplant on paper towels. Set aside.
3. Add remaining oil to pan, and add zucchini and peppers. Cook, stirring occasionally, until veggies just start to wilt, about 2 minutes.
4. Add onion and garlic and cook and stir for another minute or so until soft.
5. Add tomato and thyme and cook for another minute or two until tomato starts to wilt and release its juice.
6. Remove pan from heat. Stir in lemon juice and more salt and pepper if needed.
7. Put eggplant in a salad bowl and add the vegetables and juices from the pan. Add the chickpeas. and stir to combine all the ingredients. Cool to room temperature.
8. Before serving, taste and adjust seasonings as desired. Add Feta cheese and parsley and toss through.
9. Serve over a beg of greens for a light meal or for something heartier, serve with cooked rice or pasta.