Ratatouille with Garbanzo Panelle (Polenta)

5 from 1 vote

If you have a summer garden and you have the space for it ,you might end up finding yourself with all the necessary ingredients for ratatouille. If you have never of heard of the dish, but have heard of the movie, than your already one step closer to the recipe.

Ratatouille is basically, stewed vegetables usually consisting of onions, eggplant, tomatoes, peppers, and squash varieties. Obviously this could be altered, but that is everything I have in our garden right now! It makes perfect since for the cook or chef who came up with this recipe, who decided to cook all of it together.

I decided to add the sicilian panelle cake. Panelle cake is just like polenta, with the exception that polenta is normally made with fine cornmeal and the panelle is made with garbanzo flour. The panelle cake added a touch of texture and flavor to contrast the stewed vegetables. This is a fantastic Mediterranean recipe that is not only vegetarian/vegan but delicious! Here is the recipe I hope you enjoy it!

Ingredients

6 people

Ratatouille

1 1/2 cup eggplant diced
1 cup onion diced
1 large yellow zucchini
1 green bell pepper diced
1 yellow bell pepper diced
6 small tomatoes 3/4 cup diced and the rest puree with stick blender
3 garlic cloves minced
1 pinch chili flakes
1 1/2 tbsp basil chopped
5 tbsp olive oil
salt pepper

Panelle

3 cups water
1 1/2 cup garbanzo bean flour
1 1/2 oz parmesan finely grated
salt pepper

Nutritional information

Calories: 198kcalCarbohydrates: 28gProtein: 11gFat: 5gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 5mgSodium: 250mgPotassium: 645mgFiber: 6gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 1048IUVitamin C: 68mgCalcium: 131mgIron: 2mg

Prep Time 25

Cook Time 40

Total Time 1 5

Servings 6 people

How to make ratatouille

In medium large saucepan add olive oil, onions, and eggplant. Season with a pinch of salt and cook for 3-4 minutes. Then add garlic and chile flakes and cook for another 2 minutes. Take a little over half of your tomatoes and puree them. Pour the puree into the pot with the vegetables. Add another pinch of salt. Cook for 2 minutes and then add the peppers, squash , along with another healthy pinch of salt.
Cover the pot and cook for 12 minutes. Then add the diced tomatoes and cook for another 15 minutes stirring occasionally. Add the chopped basil and season everything with salt and pepper. All the vegetables should be tender at this point. If not you can cook for another few minutes. Turn to low or keep warm while you make the panelle.

How to make panelle (garbanzo polenta )

In a medium pot add water and a tsp of salt. Bring to a boil and then while stirring vigorously add garbanzo flour and continue to stirring until all is incorporated and smooth. Cook for 20 minutes until the flour has been completely cooked (if you still have lumps in your polenta then use a hand stick blender and puree the polenta to get rid of any lumps)..
Add parmesan cheese and stir until well combined. Adjust seasoning if need be. You have two options here, first serve the polenta hot as is like porridge. Or pour the polenta into a square or round baking dish or sheet pan or something similar. Then with a spatula smooth the polenta evenly and distribute evenly.
One trick is to place a piece of plastic wrap over the top and use your hands to help distribute the panelle evenly. Place in a refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Then taking a round cookie cutter cut out rounds of the panelle. In a medium hot pan add 3 tbsp of olive oil and 3-4 pieces of panelle.
Fry for 2-3 minutes on each side until it is lightly browned and has a bit of a crust. Flip it over and do the same on the other side.