Ratatouille: Eggplant & Goat Cheese

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It has been unseasonably cold here in LA (I know, I shouldn’t complain the majority of the country is well-below freezing) but the weather has been making me crave warm, hearty food, so I threw together this awesome ratatouille/pasta sauce/ragout/ whatever you want to call it.  To my busy moms out there, this is a great recipe if you are short on time, and is incredibly easy to make (so if you aren’t quite Martha Stewart yet in the kitchen, this is a no-brainer).  It can be prepared the night before too and cooked in the am!  Serve it with spaghetti squash, rice pasta (for those of you that do gluten-free but not paleo), or eat it by itself! We had ours with these meatballs from Fast Paleo and it really was the perfect meal: lots of veggies which are rich in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, and  packed with lean protein from the turkey meatballs.  If you are interested in learning about the benefits of the stars in this dish, zucchini and eggplant, check out this post for more info!  The recipe can also be modified for vegans as the only non-vegan addition is the goat cheese 😉

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbs olive oil
  • 4 medium size zucchini (ideally organic-skin is left on)
  • 1 large eggplant
  • 1 jar marinara sauce (or make your own)
  • 2 large bell peppers
  • Goat cheese (leave the amount up to you)
  • Salt to taste
  • Pepper to taste
  • 1 tbs dried basil
  • 2 cloves garlic, diced

How to do it:

  1. Wash zucchini and bell peppers and cut into small pieces
  2. Dice garlic
  3. Peel eggplant and cut into small pieces
  4. Pour the 2 tbs olive oil into the bottom of your crockpot and lay veggies and diced garlic on top of olive oil-stir a bit to coat them in the olive oil
  5. Sprinkle with salt and pepper (I used about 1/2 tsp salt)
  6. Pour jar of marinara on top, add dried basil
  7. Take small chunks of goat cheese and place on top of the marinara
  8. Set for 10 hours on low and enjoy!  I served it with more fresh goat cheese on top. YUM

Also-if you want to try spaghetti squash but have no idea how to cook it, check out this post on how to microwave your spaghetti squash.  Hope you guys love this!

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