Zucchini Caponata Food

ZUCCHINI CAPONATA | LODGE CAST IRON

Steps:

• Place a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the oil, then the zucchini, onion, garlic, and tomatoes. Cover and cook for 10 minutes.
• Uncover and cook an additional 10 to 15 minutes, stirring frequently, until all the liquid has evaporated. Stir in the sugar, salt, and pepper; remove from the heat.
• When lukewarm, stir in the capers, cherry tomatoes, olives, and fresh herbs. Store covered and refrigerated until ready to use.

EASY CAPONATA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add celery and cook uncovered until softened, about 1 minute. Drain in a colander and immediately immerse in ice water for several minutes to stop the cooking process. Drain.
• Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat; add onion and celery and cook until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add eggplant, red bell peppers, and zucchini and cook until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomato puree, vinegar, and sugar. Cook until the vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. Add olives, raisins, pine nuts, and capers. Season with salt and pepper and cook until flavors are well combined, about 5 minutes.
• Remove skillet from heat; stir in chopped basil. Cool and serve at room temperature.

CAPONATA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a large bowl, toss the eggplant generously with olive oil and salt, to taste. Spread out on a baking sheet and roast until the eggplant is soft and mushy, about 15 to 20 minutes. Reserve.
• Coat a wide deep pot with olive oil. Toss in the onion and crushed red pepper and season with salt, to taste. Cook over medium-high heat until the onions are soft and aromatic, about 8 to 10 minutes.
• Add the fennel, celery and garlic and cook for another 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in the peppers and cook for another 5 to 6 minutes. Add the zucchini, season with salt, to taste, and cook until the zucchini and all the veggies are soft and aromatic and starting to come together as a stew, about 5 to 6 minutes. Toss in the eggplant, 1/2 cup of water and the tomato paste. Cook until the water has evaporated. Dissolve the sugar in the vinegar in a small bowl and add it to the mixture. Stir in the raisins, capers, pine nuts and mint. Cook for another 5 to 6 minutes.
• Let cool and transfer the caponata to a serving bowl. Serve immediately or even better tomorrow or the next day.

ZUCCHINI CAPONATA WITH OLIVE DIRT

Steps:

• Heat a wide saute pan over medium heat and add olive oil. Add the onions and garlic and cook until translucent. Add the zucchini and let caramelize, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Add the capers, raisins, basil and thyme. Deglaze with the vinegar. Add the pureed yellow tomato. Cook over high heat until everything is coated and mixed together, about 3 minutes. Season with sugar and some salt and pepper.
• Bring neutral oil to 375 degrees F in a deep-fryer. (See Cook's Note.) Place pine nuts in a mesh strainer, then lower them carefully into the oil and let fry until golden. Lift back out to a paper towel-lined tray and season lightly with salt.
• Put zucchini caponata into a bowl. Sprinkle pine nuts and Olive Dirt on top. Garnish with fresh basil leaves and basil buds.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Pulse olives, panko, flour, butter, cocoa powder and some salt in a food processor until it resembles wet dirt. Spread on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and toast in the oven, 15 minutes. Allow to cool, then pulse again in food processor.

CAPONATA

Steps:

• Peel eggplant and cut into 1 inch cubes.
• Put in a strainer and sprinkle with salt.
• Place a heavy bowl on top to drain out the moisture.
• Drain for 30 minutes.
• Rinse thoroughly and dry on paper towels.
• In a large 11x15 roasting pan, combine eggplant, peppers, zucchini, onions, capers, olives, tomatoes, tomato sauce, garlic and oil.
• Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
• Mix together.
• Combine vinegar and sugar in a saucepan and heat until sugar dissolves.
• Pour over the vegetables.
• Mix together.
• Bake in the oven for 2 to 2 1/2 hours turning vegetables every half hour.
• Garnish with parsley and serve at room temperature with breads.

CAPONATA

Steps:

• Roast the eggplant, allow to cool and chop coarsely.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium heat in a large, heavy nonstick skillet and add the onion and celery. Cook, stirring, until the onion softens, about 5 minutes, and add the garlic. Cook together for a minute, until the garlic begins to smell fragrant, and add the peppers and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Cook, stirring, until just about tender, about 8 minutes. Add another tablespoon of oil and the eggplant, and stir together for another 5 minutes, until the vegetables are tender. The eggplant will fall apart, which is fine. Season to taste.
• Add the tomatoes to the pan with about 1/2 teaspoon salt and a pinch of sugar. Cook, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan often, for 5 to 10 minutes, until the tomatoes have cooked down somewhat and they smell fragrant. Add the capers, olives, remaining sugar, and vinegar. Turn the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often, for 20 to 30 minutes, until the vegetables are thoroughly tender and the mixture is quite thick, sweet, and fragrant. Season to taste with salt and pepper and remove from the heat. Allow to cool to room temperature. If possible, cover and chill overnight. Serve at room temperature.

SUMMER SQUASH CAPONATA

Steps:

• Pour 1/2 inch olive oil into a large, wide skillet over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, add enough zucchini to cover bottom of pan. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Let zucchini sizzle and brown slightly. Cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Remove to a large bowl with a slotted spoon. Continue cooking zucchini and summer squash in batches, adding oil to the pan as necessary.
• In the same skillet, cook the onions over medium-high heat, stirring, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add celery and cook for 2 to 3 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper and transfer onion mixture to bowl with zucchini.
• To the bowl, add red-pepper flakes, sugar, vinegar and capers. Toss gently together. Taste and adjust, making sure the seasoning is bright, with a balanced sweet-sour flavor. Leave for 10 to 15 minutes and taste again. (If time permits, let the flavors marry for an hour or more before serving. The caponata may be refrigerated for up to 2 days; bring to room temperature to serve.)
• Transfer mixture to a large platter. Top with olives and hard-cooked eggs, halved or quartered. Garnish with parsley and basil leaves. Serve at room temperature with toasted bread for making crostini.

EGGPLANT CAPONATA (SICILIAN VERSION)

Steps:

• Toss eggplant with salt and place in a colander set over a bowl. Let sit, about 30 minutes. Rinse and pat dry.
• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add celery; cook, stirring often, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add onion and garlic; cook and stir until onion is soft and lightly golden, about 5 minutes. Transfer mixture to a bowl using a slotted spoon.
• Heat remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in the skillet. Add eggplant and cook, stirring constantly, until lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in celery mixture, tomatoes, olives, capers, tomato paste, and oregano. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered until caponata is thickened, about 15 minutes.
• Season caponata with vinegar, sugar, salt, and black pepper. Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with parsley.

COURGETTE CAPONATA WITH THYME & GARLIC CHICKEN

Steps:

• Put one-quarter of the garlic, the thyme and some seasoning in 2 tsp of the olive oil and set aside.
• Heat the remaining oil in a pan. Tip in the onions and celery, and cook for around 10 mins until soft. Add the courgettes and the rest of the garlic, and fry for a few mins to soften. Add the tomatoes, ½ can water, capers, vinegar, sultanas and seasoning. Gently simmer for around 20 mins until the juices have thickened and the vegetables are tender.
• Meanwhile, cut the chicken breasts in half to open up like a book. Place them between 2 layers of baking parchment and flatten a little by bashing gently with a rolling pin. Heat a griddle pan and rub the chicken with your flavoured oil, discarding the garlic. Cook for around 3 mins each side, or until cooked through - you may have to do this is batches, depending on the size of your pan. Cut the chicken into strips and serve alongside the courgette caponata.

RUSTIC CAPONATA

Steps:

• Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
• In a large dutch oven, heat olive oil and onions together, slowly, until they begin to get tender, but do not take on any color (10 minutes).
• Add garlic and saute 5 minutes over medium heat.
• Add zucchini, eggplant and pepper. Season (1 tsp or so of each) with salt and black pepper. Add fresh herbs.
• Toss everything well with the oil, garlic and onions. The eggplant will absorb the oil quickly.
• Place, uncovered in the oven for 20 minutes.
• De-glaze the pan with the wine and broth. Stir in Sultanas, olives and capers and cook until most of the juices are gone and everything is tender (about 20 more minutes uncovered).
• Serve with chopped, fresh parsley and another drizzle of very good olive oil.