Summer Vegetable Ragout

You may ask yourself, what is a ragout? You may ask yourself, where does that highway lead to and you may ask yourself, am I right or am I wrong…but I digress.

So, what is a ragout? A ragout is a mélange of veggies, a stew if you will.  Take all of the fresh, seasonal summer vegetables that you can find and slow cook them over low heat for a wonderfully satisfying and healthy meal. 

This dish epitomizes summer for me – it is a recipe that is inspired by my mom. We grew up with a very large vegetable garden in our backyard, so we never wanted for fresh vegetables during the summer. From minestrone, salads and side dishes to canning for the winter – you name it, we ate those veggies. My favorite thing to this day is to take a ripe tomato still warm from the sun, slice it and put it on some nice crusty bread with a touch of olive oil, salt and basil – a true taste of summer! Today, our garden is a bit smaller, but we still love eating everything that we grow.

Whether your vegetables come from your own backyard, your CSA share or your local farmer’s market, as always, tailor this recipe to your taste.  My measurements are eyeballed, not exact. Alter quantities to what you like or have on hand. Other than the onion, the carrots and the baby potatoes, all veggies were homegrown. 

I served warm, crusty rolls alongside for dipping into the ragout and cut a wedge of beautiful aged cheddar to round out the meal. Store any leftovers in a covered container in the refrigerator and reheat gently.

Happy eating!

Summer Vegetable Ragout

Makes 4-6 servings

Olive oil

2-3 cloves of garlic, crushed

2 cups of chopped zucchini

1 ½ cups of chopped pattypan squash, or other summer squash

2 handfuls of green beans, trimmed and cut in half crosswise

1 bell pepper (I also used an Italian hot pepper as well), cut into large dice

1 small eggplant, chopped

1 large tomato, chopped

1 Vidalia onion, chopped

2 handfuls of baby carrots, cut in half crosswise

2 handfuls of baby potatoes, scrubbed and cut in half

1-2 handfuls of basil leaves, chopped or chiffonaded (reserve a bit for the end)

Water

Sea salt/fresh ground pepper

Vegetable or chicken bullion

Lemon zest from half an organic lemon

Parmigiano cheese, freshly grated to taste

Into a wide shallow pan large enough to accommodate your vegetables, pour about 2-4 Tablespoons of olive oil and set over medium low heat. Add the crushed garlic cloves to the oil and allow to cook slowly without browning - you are aiming to infuse the oil with the wonderful taste of garlic. This is a good time to chop all of your vegetables and assemble everything that you will need.

After about 10-15 minutes of slow-cooking that garlic, start adding all of your vegetables and basil to the pan: it should be a cozy fit. Press down a bit with a wooden spoon then add about 2” -3” inches of water to the pan. Turn heat up to medium and allow to come to a gentle boil. Turn down heat to medium-low, cover and allow to cook slowly and gently until vegetables are tender – but be careful not to overcook, you don’t want mush.

Season lightly with salt and pepper, then add a bullion (I use an organic chicken base which comes in a jar) to the cooking liquid and stir well to combine. Allow to cook uncovered about 2 minutes or so. Remove from heat, add lemon zest and a generous amount of parmigiano. Ladle into serving bowls sprinkle with reserved basil and serve.