Veg Recipe of the Week: Slow Cooker Ratatouille

Slow Cooker Ratatouille & Citrus Avocado Salad

Since I had half an eggplant and some zucchini in my fridge, I decided my first experiment with my new slow cooker should be ratatouille. I don't really have a set recipe for ratatouille, since I consider most stews the perfect chance to use up whatever is in my fridge. I'm also not big on measuring spices, so I tend to add stuff in random amounts, and then add more spices to taste before serving.

Here's how I made my most recent version of ratatouille:

Ingredients
1/2 a Large Eggplant - chopped in 1 inch pieces
1 Zucchini - chopped in 1 inch pieces and quartered
1 Large Can of Chopped Tomatoes
1/2 cup Trader Joe's Tomato Basil Marinara (also leftover in the fridge)
1 tub of Trader Joe's Eggplant Hummus
3 Minced Garlic Cloves
1/2 cup Chopped Onion
Various Dried Italian Spices to Taste (I used: Basil, Parsley, Rosemary, Sage, White Pepper, Black Pepper, Crushed Red Pepper)

Instructions
Throw everything except for the Hummus into the slow cooker and let it work its magic on low for 8 hours. I added the Hummus (which gave it a nice creamy consistency) and more spices at the end.

To Serve
One thing I loved about this Ratatouille is that is made enough for two dinners for each of us, and leftover for lunch for each of us. The first night I served the Ratatouille over Pumpkin Gnocchi I got from Cost Plus World Market:

Joe's Ratatouille Gnocchi with Parmesan (don't mind the pile of vitamins in the background)

And My Ratatouille All Stirred Up

I served the leftover Ratatouille later that week over whole wheat rotini pasta, added some garlic bread, and made a spinach salad with avocado, mandarin orange slices, and lemon ginger dressing (Archer Farms brand from Target) - as seen in the first pic. Yum!