Ratatouille: Or, How I May Be Losing My "I Hate Zucchini" Membership Card

First it was Sautéed Julienned Zucchini. Then it was Zucchini Tomato Slaw with Tennessee Mustard Dressing. Now, Ratatouille. What is wrong with me? I can understand the first two - the first is flash sautéed and the second uncooked with the oh-so-offensive seed cores unused, but ratatouille is, by definition cooked, and for quite a while. For this, I blame Food52. 

They featured Alice Water's Ratatouille recipe, slightly adapted, in their "Genius Recipes" series (there is some cool stuff there - check it out), during the restaurant's 40th anniversary celebration week and the treatment touched a chord for me. From the picture on the site,it looked: not soupy, not a brown mash, not full of watery zucchini that taste like heated slush - all bad taste memories for me.  

In this preparation, the peppers, onions and (yes) even the zucchini maintain texture, structure and dignity and the flavors of the other vegetables is distinct. This is still true as I eat it this morning (the third day) warmed up, under some scrambled eggs. Finally, the recipe reminded me of pound cake - a pound of tomatoes, a pound of zucchini, a pound of onions, a pound of eggplant, a pound of peppers, plus olive oil, 4-6 cloves of garlic, basil, a pinch of dried chile flakes and salt. Easy to remember. 

Since I used Food52's recipe as is and did not adapt it enough to republish, except to cut the zucchini a little bit larger than the called-for 1/2" dice, I'll refer you to their site for the recipe but will give you some notes in the pictures below, on the preparation.

Preparation Notes & Photos                                                                                                                 

 
The only quibble I have with this recipe is how the quantity of basil is described:

• 1/2 bunch of basil, tied in a bouquet with kitchen twine + 6 basil leaves, chopped

What is a "bunch of basil"? Small differences likely don't matter but a bunch can be few stems or a fist-full. During summer, especially at farmers markets, basil is plentiful and the bunches I buy are huge. If I purchased a plastic clam shell  package of fresh basil from my local corporate grocery store, it's a much, much smaller amount and may not have been enough. If I'd used half of the giant bunch of basil from the farmers market, I think it would have overwhelmed the dish.

I used yellow and green zucchini, Early Girl tomatoes, 2 small red onions, 1 medium yellow onion,
red Italian sweet peppers and 3 small eggplants and basil

I used this much basil and while the flavor permeates the dish, it doesn't overpower. To the right is the eggplant which is cooked first, caramelized, and then removed to be added back later.

The onions are colored mostly from bringing up the fond after cooking the eggplant with a little (very) color from cooking. I like making a spot for my garlic so that it actually cooks with pans' heat rather than throwing it in to steam with the other ingredients. That's a tip I picked up watching Lidia Bastianich. I used six cloves but it absolutely doesn't overwhelm the dish and cooked it to a very, very pale straw color

I cooked the onions, garlic and chile flakes before I added the basil (a slight departure from the recipe) and then, as the recipe states, added each of the following, cooking for a few minutes before adding the next ingredient: peppers, summer squash and tomatoes. Lastly, the eggplant is returned to the pan and the dish is cooked for 10-15 minutes before the basil is removed and the seasoning adjusted.

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Baked Corn Pudding - Version 2: Updated and Improved

 My original post can be found here: Baked Corn Pudding: Simple and Delicious. It was my second post but it was stuck there in February when fresh corn isn't an in-season commodity for most of us. I made it on Saturday, but changed it slightly, including my approach to the seasoning. Is it worth getting excited over changes to a recipe that has just ONE main ingredient? Oh, hell yes!

Here are the changes:

1. For every three (or four) ears that you grate, cut the kernels off of the fourth (but save it to grate any extra corn-liquid).This dish is delicious when all of the ears are grated but even better with some whole kernels.


2. Season conservatively and taste. By that I mean start with a small pinch of salt, combine thoroughly with the corn and taste. If that's not enough, add another, combine and taste. Go very easy on the salt. For this batch, I used two small pinches of kosher salt (for a net product of approximately 2 cups of unbaked corn - it was perfect. The same goes for the pepper.


3. The butter that you use to top it should be unsalted, chilled and cut into tiny cubes - this helps cut down on the amount of butter in the dish. I used 1 teaspoon for each of the ramekins pictured, below. Using less butter has no negative impact on this dish.

Another thing that's very important is that you need a minimum depth of two- and up to three (-ish)  inches of unbaked product in whatever container you use to cook the corn. You need to bake it long enough to get at least a little brown, but not so long that it dries out. It's  more important that the corn pudding is moist than completely browned on top. I started checking these after 25 minutes and ultimately baked them for 35 minutes. There should be some liquid bubbling around the outside and the middle should be moist, but not runny.

The ramekins pictured below are 1 cup (8 fl. oz), with a depth of 2" at the inside rim.

On the left, about 1 teaspoon small dice of chilled butter scattered over the surface. You could use more butter I guess, but I think too much butter detracts from the corn flavor. I placed the ramekins on a baking sheet. If you are making a larger quantity and use a single oven-proof container, there's no need for the baking sheet.

Recipe: Corn Pudding (v2)
Serves 4 as a side - multiply at will to serve more.


Ingredients:

• 4 large ears of corn (7-9 inches long), husks and silk removed. Trim off 1/4-1/2 inch at the tip and remove about the same at the stalk end.


• 2 teaspoons well-chilled, unsalted butter + a little to grease the baking dish


• kosher salt (if using table salt and/or salted butter, use a smaller pinch when seasoning)


• fresh ground pepper

•  Oven-proof baking dish. The dish should be sized so that there is a depth of at least 2" of corn and up to 3" (ish). If using ramekins, place them on a baking sheet before putting them in the oven.


• Box grater (or corn creamer) and a large container over which you'll grate the ears. I generally do it over a flexible cutting mat and slide the grated corn (after grating each half ear) into a mixing bowl. 


• Sharp knife for removing the kernels from one ear and cutting the ears in half, lengthwise

Instructions:

• Pre-heat the oven to 400 F, rack in the middle.


• Lightly grease the inside of the baking dish with butter


• Cut 3 of the prepared ears of corn (see above) in half, lengthwise. Slice the kernels off of the fourth ear into a bowl. When the kernels are removed, grate any remaining bits of corn and liquid into the bowl.


• Grate the remaining corn into the bowl.


• Season the mixture with 1 small pinch of salt. Combine well and taste. Continue to season (conservatively) and taste until you are satisfied. A little goes a long way, here.


• Season the mixture with a few grinds of black pepper and taste. Continue to season (conservatively) and taste until you are satisfied.


• Pour the mixture into the prepare baking dish. If you are using ramekins, make sure that the mixture is combined well as the liquids separate very quickly from the corn solids.


• Remove the chilled butter from the freezer and cut off a 2-teaspoon slice. This isn't brain surgery so a little more won't hurt. Cut it into a small dice and distribute evenly over the top of the corn mixture.


• Dust the top with a little bit more fresh-ground pepper and place the baking dish in the oven. If you are using ramekins, place them on a baking sheet first.


• Check the corn after 25 minutes and thereafter every 5 minutes. There should be some liquid bubbling around the edges and the center should be moist but not runny.


• Let it rest for few minutes, then serve.

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Sautéed Summer Squash Julienne with Garlic, Hot Pepper Flakes, Lemon and Shaved Parmagiana

Summer squash season makes me sad. Mostly because there are mounds and mounds of BEAUTIFUL shapes and colors of summer squash all over the place. Why am I sad amidst such a bounty?

Because I mostly hate summer squash. I don't mind it raw, diced up in a salad, diced small and sautéed in a smoking hot pan for a blink of an eye or (duh!) zucchini bread. It's when it is in chunks and cooked until it's soft and watery (I blame the seeds) that I start to hate it. A lot. I loved "Ratatouille" but do not like the dish. [Note: based on this recipe, the previous sentence is no longer true.]

A few weeks ago I saw Jacques Pépin make a yellow and green zucchini 'spaghetti'. He cut off each side - down to but not including the seed cores, julienned the planks and sautéed those fast, in a hot pan. I would trust Jacques Pépin with my very life so I thought I'd give it a shot. Now, I don't like wasting food. I use my produce scraps for stock that I will either use immediately or freeze and the only time the scraps go into the compost bin is when the freezer door becomes difficult to close. I save the heels of hard cheese to thrown into soups and stews. I use the water in which I cooked the chickpeas to cook the barley, and then I throw my onion/leek, carrot and celery produce scraps in that to make a broth.

Throwing the seedy cores of a couple of zucchinis into the compost bin? Zero guilt.

I didn't cut my own julienne, I used a Messermeister julienne-ing thingy. Worked like a charm. There are other small tools out there that are advertised as doing the same but this is the only one I've used and I'm happy with it and yes, my mandoline still scares me a little which is why I didn't use that. The Messermeister cut really beautiful, delicate julienne - and it's easier to clean up than the mandoline.

The ones I cut by hand were a little more like linguine but I think would have been just fine. Thinking after the fact, if I had hand-cut them, I might have cut thin slices, down to the core on each side, stacked those and then cut the strips - resulting in a more consistent julienne. The process using the peeler was very, very fast.

Messermeister julienne-ing thingy (left) and hand-cut julienne (right)

 Will I make it again? Absolutely. Next time I'll pan-roast some cherry tomatoes too. I think it would taste great hot or at room temperature. Top with shrimp? Tofu? Yes and yes. This has possibilities.

Recipe: Sautéed Summer Squash Julienne with Garlic, Pepper Flakes, Lemon and Shaved Parmagiana

Inspired by Jacques Pépin
Serves one for lunch or two as a side.

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil + extra to drizzle on the finished dish
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 pinch red pepper flakes (may be increased, decreased or left out if you're not fond of heat)
• 2 summer squash (about 6" long each and 1" in diameter), thoroughly washed and julienned (including the skin) - not including the seed core.
• Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
• Juice of 1/2 small lemon
• Parmigiana or another hard aged cheese (romano, grana padana, asiago, etc.) to shave or grate on top of the finished dish.

Method:

• Heat the olive oil in a 10" or 11" sauté pan or skillet on medium. When the oil shimmers, add the minced garlic and let it cook for a minute. Add the red pepper flakes and cook for until the garlic is a light straw-color. 
• Turn up the heat to medium high and add the julienned zucchini, stir to pick up the garlic from the bottom of the pan and toss to coat the zucchini and distribute the garlic and red pepper flakes.
• After a minute, taste a couple of strands of the zucchini - it should be tender (pliable) but still feel a little crisp under your teeth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If it's not done yet, cook one more minute - tossing the zucchini to keep it moving and taste again.
• Take it off the heat, squeeze the juice of the 1/2 lemon and toss to combine.
• Plate immediately. Drizzle a little olive oil over the top and shave or grate some of the cheese over top.

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Baked Corn Pudding: Simple and Delicious

This recipe has been updated, see: Baked Corn Pudding - Version2: Updated and Improved

No cream, no aromatics, no bacon, no cheese (gasp!).  Corn, butter, salt. and pepper.  Eat it and be happy.

Ingredients

• 6 ears fresh corn


• 2 tsp kosher salt (1 tsp iodized salt)


• 4 tbsp unsalted butter + more for greasing the baking dish


• 1/4 tsp kosher salt  (a small pinch iodized salt) for the top


• Pepper to taste

Equipment:

• Box grater or corn creamer


• A big, wide bowl in which to grate the corn


• 8" square baking dish, greased with butter (compare the a volume of corn to the volume of your baking dish before greasing it - use a smaller or larger size baking dish as necessary)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400 F (204 C)


• Using the box grater, remove the meat and juices from each of the ears working very close to the cob - you want this to be very mushy and milky.  For me, cutting the ears in half makes them easier to handle.  Once you have finished the corn, season with salt and pepper, tasting the mixture.


• Pour the corn mixture into the baking pan.  Smooth out the top and dot with butter.  Sprinkle the top with the additional salt.


• Bake on the middle rack at 400 F uncovered for 45-50 minutes (start checking it at 40 minutes), or until the top is golden brown around the sides and the corn is bubbling.  Remove from the oven and let it rest for a few minutes before serving.

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