Your Daily Dish: Eggplant and Zucchini Ratatouille Tart

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Julia Child’s Birthday
We bow down to the woman who believed in cream, butter and blowtorches in the kitchen. In honour of what would have been her 101st birthday this year, we’re making this Eggplant & Zucchini Ratatouille Tart, tender eggplant, zucchini and onion, creamy ricotta and sweet Roma tomatoes all housed in a flaky, buttery crust.

Ingredients

Butter Crust

1 ½ cups flour
½ tsp kosher salt
8 tbsp cold butter, cut into cubes
4 tbsp ginger ale

Vegetable Filling

2 small eggplants, thinly sliced
2 zucchini, thinly sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
¼ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp olive oil
1 large white onion, thinly sliced

¾ cup ricotta cheese
¼ cup tomato sauce
2 Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
¼ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1) For the crust, combine flour, salt and butter in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until coarse meal, about the size of peas. Slowly add the ginger ale, pulsing just until the dough starts to come together. Turn the dough out onto the counter, shape into a round disc and tightly wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 1 hour.

2) Preheat oven to 350ºF. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to fit a 10-inch tart pan (with a removable bottom). Place the dough in the tart pan and trim excess dough. Press aluminum foil over the dough and weigh down with uncooked rice, beans or pie weights. Place tart pan on baking sheet and bake 15 minutes. Remove from oven and remove foil. Return to oven, raise temperature to 400ºF and bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until no longer shiny and wet. Remove from oven and let cool.

3) For the filling, place the eggplant slices in a colander and sprinkle lightly with a few pinches of salt. Allow to drain for 25-30 minutes. Rinse eggplant under cold water and pat dry with paper towel. Line 2 baking sheets with aluminum foil and coat with non-stick cooking spray. Lay eggplant and zucchini slices in a single layer on the prepared baking sheets. Brush with 2 tbsp olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast in 400ºF oven for 12 minutes, until slightly softened. Remove vegetables from oven and set aside. Lower oven temperature to 350ºF.

4) In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté 5-6 minutes, until soft.

5) To assemble the tart, spread ricotta cheese over baked tart crust. Follow with tomato sauce, spreading evenly over ricotta. Scatter cooked onion slices on top. Starting from the outside of the crust, begin to spiral the eggplant, zucchini and tomato slices, slightly overlapping until the surface is covered. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and top with Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350ºF for 25-30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool 5 minutes before unmolding and slicing. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves 6

P.S. Did you know it’s reported that French Onion Soup was Julia Child’s last meal?

Whether it’s cruising the aisles at the Dollar Store or experimenting at the stove, we believe that every day can be a holiday.