RATATOUILLE or CONFIT BYALDI

Ratatouille or Confit Byaldi

After a visit to my local Farmers Market, I couldn't resist and purchased a bunch of various vegetables.  The first dish that came to mind was Ratatouille, or Confit Byaldi.  


Veggies From Market

While the "original" ratatouille recipes tell us to fry the vegetables before baking, the Confit Byaldi version does not fry them. The vegetables are baked slowly in the oven for several hours to steam.  Sauces, cheese or vinaigrettes could be then added to the final baked/steamed vegetables.

Many recipes for Ratatouille are featured on the Net, including Chef Thomas Keller's version of Byaldi which was published in his 1999 cookbook, The French Laundry Cookbook.  In Chef Keller's recipe, he added two sauces.  One is a tomato and pepper sauce called piperade, which is made of reduced and finely chopped tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic and herbs, then spread thinly at the bottom of the vegetable bed.  The other is an herbed balsamic vinaigrette that is served atop the vegetables.  

 

The first time I made this dish was in 2007, not long after the movie, Ratatioulle, was released.  I admit it.  I did go to the movies to see it back then, only after I learned that Chef Keller served as a food consultant for the Pixar film and allowed its producer to intern at his restaurant.  It was a really good movie.  And a good recipe, nonetheless.

 

Circa 2007

So I revisited the recipe (and watched the movie) again.  And after several hours of prep, below is my adaption of Chef Keller's version of Byaldi, or Ratatioulle, using  all of the vegetables that I purchased at the Market.

INGREDIENTS

For Piperade:
1/2 red pepper, seeds and ribs removed
1/2 yellow pepper, seeds and ribs removed
1 lime green pepper, seeds removed
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 cup finely diced yellow onion
3 Roma tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and finely diced, juices reserved
1 sprig thyme
1 sprig flat-leaf parsley
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt

For Vegetables:
1 zucchini sliced in 1/16-inch rounds
1/2 Italian eggplant sliced into 1/16-inch rounds
1/2 white eggplant sliced into 1/16-inch rounds
1 yellow squash sliced into 1/16-inch rounds
4 Roma tomatoes, sliced into 1/16-inch rounds
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon thyme leaves, fresh
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For Vinaigrette:
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS

For Piperade:
Heat oven to 450 degrees. Place pepper halves on a foil-lined sheet, cut side down. Roast until skin loosens, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest until cool enough to handle. Peel and chop finely.

Cut an X on the bottom of each tomato.  Add tomatoes into a pot of boiling water for about 45 seconds to one minute.  Remove tomatoes and quickly submerge into an ice water bath.  This will loosen the skins and make it easier to peel the tomatoes.  When cooled, remove tomatoes from ice water.  Peel, remove seeds and dice tomatoes while reserving as much juice as possible.  Strain tomato juice through a very fine sieve to extract seeds.  Set juice aside.

Diced Tomatoes

Combine oil, garlic, and onion in medium skillet over low heat until soft, about 8 minutes. Add tomatoes, their juices, thyme, parsley, and bay leaf. Simmer over low heat until very soft. Add peppers and simmer to soften them.  

Tomato and Pepper Mixture

Season to taste with salt.  Discard herbs. Reserve a tablespoon of mixture. Spread the remaining piperade mixture in the bottom of an 8-inch skillet.

For Vegetables:

Heat oven to 275 degrees. Down center of pan, arrange a strip of 8 alternating slices of vegetables over piperade, overlapping so that 1/4 inch of each slice is exposed. Repeat until pan is filled.

Pre-Oven

Mix garlic, oil, and thyme leaves in bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle over vegetables. Cover pan with lid (alternatively, use parchment paper or foil crimping edges to seal well).  Bake until vegetables are tender about 2 hours.  When done, remove from oven.

For Vinaigrette:
Combine reserved piperade, oil, vinegar, herbs, and salt and pepper to taste in a bowl.

To Serve:

Spoon vegetables onto individual serving plates. Cheese, such as parmesan, feta, or mozzarella, may be added to the roasted vegetables.  Then Drizzle vinaigrette around plate. Serve hot.

Yield: 4 servings

ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP WITH SAGE AND NUTMEG CREME FRAICHE

 

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

This is another one of those go-to soup recipes that I love to revisit in the fall and winter months.  I've been making Tom Keller's Roasted Butternut Squash Soup since I purchased his Bouchon cookbook in 2004  http://www.amazon.com/Bouchon-Thomas-Keller/dp/1579652395/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1353249126&sr=8-1&keywords=bouchon+cookbook.   Although I've seen many bloggers include this recipe on their sites, I also wanted to add it as a follow-up to my turkey and stuffing recipes to complete the Thanksgiving menu. 

To me, the most difficult part is cutting the neck off from the bulb of the squash.  The rest is easy. 

 

And over the years, I made some slight adjustments.  For example, I sometimes use sour cream in lieu of creme fraiche.  Also, I use more sage for roasting the squash.  Finally, I don't finish the soup with brown butter or chives, but I do add the crisped sage leaves as a garnish.

Ingredients:
1 3-to-3 1/2-pound butternut squash
2 tablespoons canola oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 sprigs sage
1 cup thinly sliced leeks
1/2 cup thinly sliced carrots
1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots
1/2 cup thinly sliced onions
6 garlic cloves, smashed
2 tablespoons honey
6 cups vegetable stock, preferably home-made
Bouquet Garni made of 8 sprigs thyme, 2 sprigs Italian parsley,
2 bay leaves and 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns, all wrapped in a
packet made of 2 green leek leaves
1/4 cup sour cream or creme fraiche
Freshly grated nutmeg

6 sage leaves and canola oil (for garnish)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a small baking sheet with aluminum foil. Cut the neck off the squash and set it aside. Cut the bulb in half and scoop out and discard seeds. Brush each half inside and out with about 1 1/2 teaspoons of the canola oil. Sprinkle the cavities with salt and pepper and tuck sprigs of sage into each. Place cut-side-down on the baking sheet and roast until completely tender, about 1 hour. Remove the squash from the oven and let cool, then scoop out and reserve the flesh (discard sage).

Pre-Oven Squash With Fresh Sage

 

Roasted Butternut Squash

 

Roasted Butternut Squash

Meanwhile, using a vegetable peeler, peel away the skin from the neck of the squash until you reach the bright orange flesh. Cut the flesh into 1/2-inch pieces (there should be about 4 cups).

 

Prep for the "Un Roasted" Squash

Put the remaining canola oil in a stockpot over medium-high heat, add the leeks, carrots, shallots and onions and cook, stirring often, for about 6 minutes. Add the diced squash, garlic, dash of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook gently for 3 minutes, reducing the heat as necessary to keep the garlic and squash from coloring. Stir in the honey and cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the stock and bouquet garni, bring to a simmer and cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until the squash is tender.

  

Squash Simmering

Add the roasted squash and simmer gently for about 30 minutes for the flavors to blend. Remove from the heat and discard the bouquet garni. Transfer the soup to a blender, in batches, and puree.

 

Puree Soup

 Strain the soup through a fine sieve into a bowl.

 

Pureed Soup

Place the creme fraiche in a small chilled bowl and stir in nutmeg to taste. Whisk until the creme fraiche holds a shape. Cover and refrigerate.

Heat 1/8 inch of canola oil in a small skillet.  When oil is very hot, add the sage leaves and cook turning the leaves to crisp them on both sides.  Drain the sage on paper towels.

Ladle the soup into serving bowls. Top each with a dollop of the nutmeg sour cream/creme fraiche and sage leaves. Serves 4.