Today is our neighborhood yard sale. That means, while the posted signs say 8 a.m. to ??, in reality people start trolling our streets around 6 a.m. or so. And that got our dog's attention. I don't know what part of her "breeding" this is, but she barks ferociously in response to outside noises. So, squirrels running across the roof --BARK, BARK! Car doors shutting --BARK, BARK! People walking by talking --BARK, BARK! Bicyclists whizzing by --BARK, BARK!
You get the picture. Since my husband has been out of town the last several days, the dog is ESPECIALLY on guard. In fact, she has taken to sleeping in the front entrance-way. Perhaps she thinks if he comes home, she will be the first to see him. Or maybe she thinks--just let any intruder try to get in--I'm all over it.
Well, I arose MUCH earlier on a Saturday than I would normally--up at 6:19 a.m. because the dog heard something.
What does this have to do with soup? (Tapping finger to lips, furrowing brow, scrunching up face!) Actually--nothing. Just thought I'd share the joy of an early morning.
Herewith today's soup. And an announcement--the Saturday Soup feature will begin a summer respite next week. I suspect most people don't make soup during the warmer months of the year (unless they are cold soups). Since all my recipes are from our church Bistro which is mid-winter, all the soups are hot. So, beginning Memorial Day weekend (in the US) and continuing until after Labor Day (also in the US) Saturday Soups will be on vacation.
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RATATOUILLE
Serves at least 12
1 medium eggplant
1 or 2 zucchini
1 or 2 yellow squash
8 medium size tomatoes
1 purple onion
1 green pepper
Olive oil
Basil
Salt
Pepper
1 small can V-8 juice
1. In a large soup pot, place a good amount of olive oil, enough to cover the bottom of pot.
Wash the onion, remove skin and thinly slice. Wash and core green pepper, also slice. Place these in bottom of pot and saute on medium high heat until tender. Then turn heat back to low.
2. Take eggplant, wash and cut into 1" cubes. Place this on top of onion and peppers.
3. Take 2 tomatoes and slice, then place on top of eggplant, then season this layer liberally with basil, some salt and pepper.
4. Repeat this layering process with zucchini, and tomatoes with seasoning; then again with yellow squash, tomatoes and seasoning.
5. Pour the V-8 juice across the top of the whole mix.
6. Simmer the whole mixture until vegetable are tender.
This is really a vegetable stew, that can be served as a soup alone, or as a side-dish with a meal. It can be served hot or cold. It also stores well in the refrigerator.
I make ratatouille (pronounced rat-ta-too-ee) all summer long and it has become one of our favorite summer dishes.
Until the fall--enjoy summertime!
8 comments:
I think your dog is being protective. :)
I'll look back for more soup recipes. Sometimes we make it during the summer ~ but not so often. There's nothing like a bowl of soup and a piece of French bread any time of the year!
Peace,
~Chani
You made this soup one time when I was visiting and you are right, it was very good! You served it cold and I remember thinking that cold soup was a little weird, until I tried it! It was wonderful and I still remember how much I liked it.
Our dog, Molly, is also a barker. She thinks she has to bark at everything and anything. Last evening we were out in our yard and our neighbor’s dog, a very large lab/retriever mix came over. He is an over grown, loveable mouse of a dog. Molly is going to guard our yard at all costs. This dog is twice the size of Molly but she isn’t going to be deterred at all. I am embarrassed by how bossy and aggressive she is. She would have attacked him if we hadn’t stepped in. Problem is, their dog is so laid back that he didn’t even notice that Molly was ready to attack. I don’t know what he would have done if we hadn’t stopped Molly. Molly never treats people like that, but bring this dog around and whoa!
Now if I could just convince my husband that chunks of vegetables floating in a broth are not his parents reaching from the grave to make his life miserable. (Yes. He had 'issues' with his parents who made bad soups and insisted they be eaten. Now 'floating' vegetables are the unfortunate symbol of that conflict)
Thanks for sharing your "Saturday Soups," Donna. I'll look forward to more inspiration in September.
Chani--you are so right: soup is almost a perfect food, with good bread. . .mmmmm!
Denise--I didn't remember that I made this for you. I make this MANY times when we go some place & have to bring a food along. People have come to expect me to make it. Poor Molly--little dog; big heart.
Cathy--well, actually, these vegetables don't much float. This is a very thick "soup", more like a stew. And when I make it, people always ask if there is a meat broth base, and the answer is--no. Maybe you can convince him to taste a little bit.
I love this dish and take leftovers cold to work for lunch. I add hot pepper flakes as well because I am a spicy food lover.
ruth
Oh! We had a dog similarly disposed. I have to admit - after he was gone, I never slept quite as securely. What's your pup's name?
Some of my Korean friends tell me that a meal is not complete until you have soup. I'm almost inclined to agree. Anyway, we will have to work our way through all 12 recipes this Summer. Manitoba is not as hot as Pennsylvania, even in the Summer!
Fritzie (small longhaired dachshund) also pushed our neighbour's collie around. I was also embarassed. The trouble with barking is that dogs can hear so much more than we can, so they can bark loudly when we hear nothing to respond to.
Beautiful dog! I think he's protecting you as well.
Thank you so much for sending the card to Dale. He enjoyed it so much. *hugs*
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