Caponata

Tonight was cultural cooking group and our theme was Mediterranean Cuisine so I grabbed my favorite Sicilian recipe and hit the store...well, my husband went to the store for me as he was already out and he'd much rather be out shopping than taking care of our 4 rambunctious kiddos at dinner time :)

The recipe calls for a zucchini so my husband calls me to say there is no zucchini at the store. So I asked for yellow/crookneck/summer squash instead and the light bulb went off and he says, "Oh, is zucchini green squash?"

"YES! get the green squash," I request.

When he arrived home, he actually had a cucumber so this was made without squash which is no big deal, this recipe is one of those refrigerator specials...clean out your need-to-use produce for this dish.

2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1 Red Bell Pepper, diced
1 Medium Eggplant, diced (peeling is optional)
1 Zucchini, diced
1 14oz can artichoke hearts, rinsed & drained
1 3.8oz can sliced black olives, rinsed & drained
2 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes
1 15oz can tomato sauce
2 Tbsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 tsp salt (to taste)
Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes (place in palm of one hand and use thumb of other hand to rub flakes together. Releases oils and flavor! Just be sure to scrub hands immediately afterward.)
2-3 sprigs of fresh Thyme

Heat a deep 12" skillet to medium setting add olive oil and saute garlic and onion for about 2 minutes. Add red pepper and saute for about 5 minutes more. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Turn up the heat a little and cover. Stir often to combine flavors. After about 20 minutes, bring heat back down to medium or a little lower. Cook for another 15 to 20 minutes or until veggies are tender.

Serve over toasted baguette slices, pasta or by itself. Top with grated Parmesan and enjoy!

I'll try to get a picture tomorrow...I had to rush out the door to get to cultural cooking on time :)