Very Varied Vegetable Gratin

I’m sure everyone has been enjoying their corn, but we got lots of other vegetables in the share last week, and with the eggplant, zucchini, peppers, and squash, I was thinking ratatouille. But when looking up recipes, I found a few for a vegetable gratin, and that sounded so good I made that instead. I used a little of one recipe, a little of another, and came up with this.

I made this for a potluck attended by a bunch of finicky musicians (okay, they aren’t finicky—they’ll eat anything, but they are quite honest about their reviews of what they eat), and they all went back for seconds. It was very well received, and I’ll definitely make it again and hope to get more than a few bites myself next time.

Vegetable Gratin
2 smallish eggplants, partially peeled (peel off strips, leaving skin every other strip)
1 small to medium zucchini
1 medium pattypan squash
1 red or purple pepper, seeded and sliced
1 onion, sliced thin
1 Tablespoon sugar
2 cloves garlic, chopped
12 roma tomatoes, sliced
½ cup mozzarella, shredded
¼ cup bread crumbs
¼ cup parmesan cheese
Olive oil
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh basil
Salt and pepper

Partially peel the eggplants and then slice into rounds about a half-inch thick. Cut the rounds into halves or quarters, so they are about bite size. Sprinkle the pieces with salt and arrange on rack for about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, chop the garlic and slice the onion. Peel the zucchini, cut in rounds, and cut the rounds into halves or quarters. Cut the pattypan squash into bite-size pieces, too. Slice the tomatoes. Then put a little olive oil in a skillet and add the onion and sugar. Sauté the onion until soft, stirring so it doesn’t burn, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook it for another 2 minutes or so. Add about four sliced tomatoes and cook for 2 or 3 more minutes.

Spread the onion/garlic/tomato mixture over the bottom of a baking dish (8” square or 7” x 11” casserole). Then add a little olive oil to the skillet and cook the eggplant pieces, about 4 minutes on each side. Remove the eggplant from heat and let cool a little.

In a large bowl, toss the zucchini, pattypan squash, pepper, and tomato slices with about a tablespoon or two of olive oil, the chopped basil, and salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Then layer the eggplant and the other vegetables in the casserole on top of the onion mixture in the casserole.

Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 30 minutes, then take the casserole out and sprinkle with grated mozzarella, then bread crumbs, then parmesan cheese. Bake for another 15-20 minutes, until cheese is brown and bubbly.