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Caponata

This recipe is inspired by Caponata, from Sicily. Some describe this dish as similar to ratatouille, with an added burst of acidity and a hint of sweetness.

Ingredients

  • 2 small or medium-sized eggplants.
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 1 large white onion, small dice
  • 1 stalk celery, small dice
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 cloves black garlic, minced
  • 1 red bell pepper, small dice
  • 1 green bell pepper, small dice
  • 6 roma tomatoes, insides and seeds removed, medium dice
  • 2 Tbsp capers, minced
  • ¼ cup pitted black olives
  • ¼ cup sherry vinegar
  • 3 Tbsp sugar
  • Salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 425F.
  • Coat eggplant in ½ of the olive oil and some salt and roast in hot oven until browned.
  • Remove from oven and allow to cool.
  • When the eggplant is cool enough to handle, chop into small pieces.
  • Heat remaining olive oil in saute pan.
  • Cook onion and celery on medium-low heat for 15 minutes, or until the onions are soft.
  • Add the fresh garlic and minced black garlic and cook for an additional 2 minutes.
  • Add the red bell pepper and green bell pepper and diced tomatoes and cook for an additional 10 minutes.
  • Add the roasted eggplant you cooked earlier, in addition to the black olives, sherry vinegar, and sugar.
  • Cook mixture for an additional 5 minutes.
  • Taste and adjust acidity and sweetness.
  • Season with salt and freshly-ground black pepper.
  • Allow to cool and serve at room temperature, on top of warm crostini.

Notes

The slightly smaller eggplants have more flavor than the largest ones you can find at the market. They also have far fewer seeds and more compact flesh in the center.
Caponata tastes great the next day. If chilling in the fridge overnight, it is best to allow this to come to room temperature before serving it. The cold olive oil will need time to warm up and become less viscous.