Ratatouille recipe serves up harvest vegetables

Drawing inspiration from fall harvest vegetables, chef Fraser MacLeod of 529 Wellington prepared and served a roasted squash ratatouille using only the ingredients he could find at the downtown Winnipeg farmers market on Thursday.

Ratatouille is a traditional French Provenal vegetable dish with stewed tomato taste.

"You can make ratatouille with many different types of ingredients," MacLeod said.

"Here I have potatoes, zucchini, carrots and celery," he said, indicating a mixing bowl filled with fruit and vegetables on his cooking table. "You can even make ratatouille out of apples."

As with most French cuisine, the presentation sets the dish apart. The vegetables are carefully layered in a circular pattern over the tomato-based sauce.

Roasted squash ratatouille with feta byChef Fraser MacLeodat 529 Wellington

Ingredients:

• 2 zucchini
• 1 large eggplant
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 1 green bell pepper
• 2 to 3 leeks
• 1 small butternut squash
• 1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tsp fresh basil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp fresh thyme
• 1 tsp fresh crumbled rosemary
• 1 lemon
• 1 tsp granulated sugar
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 tbspolive oil
• 1 cup shredded fresh basil, optional
• 1 cup crumbled feta, optional

Method:

Place oven racks in top and bottom third of oven. Preheat to 400F (200C). Slice zucchini in half lengthwise, then into large chunks. Chop unpeeled eggplant into similar-size chunks. Coarsely chop peppers. Slice off and discard dark green tops and roots from leeks. Slice leeks in half lengthwise. Fan out and rinse under water. Thinly slice. Peel squash. (Microwaving on high for a couple of minutesmakes this easier.) Cut into pieces the same size as zucchini. Place veggies and tomatoes in a very large bowl. Add olive oil, basil, salt, thyme and rosemary. Toss to coat. Spread over two large baking sheets.

Roast in top and bottom third of oven until squash is tender but not mushy, 35 to 45 min. Rotate sheets and stir veggies halfway through. Squeeze juice from lemon into a bowl. Stir in sugar and garlic. Whisk in oil. Place cooked vegetables into a large bowl. Drizzle with half of dressing and toss. Taste and add more dressing if needed. Great warm or at room temperature or cover and refrigerate up to 2 days. Add basil and feta just before serving.

Makes 6 servings.

CBC Manitoba partneredwith the Childhood Nutrition Council,Downtown Winnipeg BIZ and some of the city's most talented chefsto offerrecipe demonstrations thathighlightlocal ingredients andlocal shop owners who harvestthem. Recipe demonstrations took place every Thursday in August at 11:50 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.