CREOLE RATATOUILLE

Nonstick cooking spray
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves
1 red bell pepper, seeded
and finely diced
1 green bell pepper, seeded
and finely diced
1 1/4 pounds (1 medium) eggplant, finely diced
1 zucchini, finely diced
1 yellow squash, finely diced
1 pinch Herbes de Provence
1 teaspoon Creole Seasoning*
4 large ripe tomatoes, finely diced (leave skin on and retain juice)
1/2 cup white wine
Salt and pepper (to taste)

Coat a large pot with cooking spray. Add olive oil and heat on medium-high to just below the smoking point. Add onion and garlic, cover pot and cook until they are translucent, soft and starting to brown. Add bell peppers and cook 2 minutes. Add eggplant and cook 2 minutes more. Add zucchini and yellow squash and cook an additional 2 minutes. Keep the pot covered in between additions.

Add Herbes de Provence, Creole Seasoning, tomatoes with juice and white wine. Bring mixture to a boil and simmer, uncovered, about 20 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

*Creole Seasoning: Zatarain or Paul Prudhomme.

Recipe by Kevin Graham, author of several cookbooks, including Creole Flavors (Artisan, 1996), and chef-owner of the Sapphire Restaurant at New Orleans' Omni Royal Crescent Hotel.

Servings: 6
Source: SHAPE Cooks, Spring, 1998