Ratatouille Side Dish

Ratatouille Side Dish – made with basil roasted garlic and topped with whipped feta! An amazing, light, gluten-free summer side recipe.

What does ratatouille taste like?

The amount of fresh summer vegetables in this dish makes it super fresh tasting. But it’s also rich and flavorful from the tomato base. It’s similar taste to stewed vegetables in tomato sauce.

I bring up the flavor a few notches in the recipe by adding fresh basil and roasted garlic. Then I top it with whipped feta. It’s a flavor explosion and I am here for it.

How do you cut the vegetables so thin?

You can use a really sharp knife. But a mandolin makes thin slicing a lot more enjoyable, easier, and faster!

Is ratatouille eaten hot or cold?

It can definitely be served at room temperature. So it’s a perfect show stopping dish to bring to a dinner party or over to a cookout.

You can also eat it cold. But I definitely prefer it served hot rather than cold.

How do you eat ratatouille?

It’s great as a side dish. But it can also be served as a vegetarian main dish. You can serve it over garlic bread, pasta, polenta, rice, or orzo.

I’d recommend grilled chicken, Italian sausage, or steak if you want to serve it as a side dish.

Ratatouille Side Dish

Made with basil roasted garlic and topped with whipped feta! An amazing, light, gluten-free summer side recipe.

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Total Time: 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Servings: 6

Ingredients

Basil Roasted Garlic:

• 3 heads of garlic
• 4 Tablespoons olive oil divided
• salt
• pepper
• 1/4 cup fresh basil thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup parmesan
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

Ratatouille:

• 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
• 3/4 cup water
• 4 Tablespoons olive oil divided
• ½ onion finely chopped
• 1 eggplant
• 2 zucchini
• 1 yellow squash
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 1 teaspoon thyme leaves fresh
• Salt and pepper to taste

Whipped feta:

• 8 oz feta
• 8 oz whipped cream cheese
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup sliced green onions
• 1 lemon juiced
• 2 garlic cloves
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon honey
• 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 2-3 dashes hot sauce optional
• 1/4 cup basil thinly sliced

Instructions

Roast the garlic:

• Preheat oven to 375F degrees.
• Using a sharp knife, slice off the top of the garlic heads to expose the cloves inside. Grab a round or square cake pan (I usually use a 9-inch one) and pour 2 Tablespoons of olive oil inside. Swirl it around the bottom of the pan to coat evenly. Place garlic heads inside, exposed side up.
• Sprinkle the garlic heads with a little salt and pepper. Drizzle 1 more Tablespoon of olive oil on top. You want them to have a nice coating of oil so they don’t burn easily. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and roast in the preheated oven for 40 minutes.

Ratatouille:

• Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray.
• Spread the tomato paste in the bottom of the baking dish. Stir in water, olive oil and chopped onion. Season with salt and pepper.
• Wash and very thinly slice eggplant, zucchini, squash, yellow bell pepper, and red bell pepper.
• Arrange vegetables in rows, make sure each vegetable is overlapping another one. Order doesn’t mater.
• Once the roasted garlic is done, remove from oven and grab the bottom of the garlic head and gently squeeze until the cloves pop out into the pie dish- they will be mushy. Take a fork and mash with 1/4 cup fresh basil, 1/4 cup parmesan, 1 Tablespoon olive oil, and crushed red pepper flakes. Rub mixture all over the top of the prepared vegetables.
• Drizzle 3 Tablespoons over vegetables, sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves, and season with salt and pepper.
• Cover with parchment paper or foil and bake in over for 45 minutes.

Whipped feta:

• Add feta cheese to a blender or food processor and pulse until feta is broken into small crumbs. Add the cream cheese and blend on low for 3-4 minutes until cheese are very smooth and combined.
• Add parsley, green onions, lemon, garlic cloves, olive oil, honey, red wine vinegar, and hot sauce – blend until smooth. It’s okay if there are flecks of herbs.
• Drizzled whipped feta over ratatouille and top with fresh basil. Serve with quinoa, rice, or bread and enjoy!