Grilled Italian Eggplant Caponata

Name: Grilled Italian Eggplant Caponata
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 75 min
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: ½ cup Green Olive (½ cup oil cured green olives); ¼ cup Pine Nuts (¼ cup pine nuts); 1 piece Eggplant (1 large eggplant, about 8" (20.3 cm) long (about 1 1/2 pounds (680.3 g))); 1 piece Zucchini (1 zucchini, about 6" (15.2 cm) long (about 3/4 pounds (340.2 g))); 1 piece Red Bell Pepper (1 medium sweet red bell pepper); 1 piece Yellow Onion (1 medium onion); 2 pieces Celery (2 celery stalks); 6 tbsp Olive Oil (6 tablespoons good quality olive oil); ¼ tsp Kosher Salt (¼ teaspoon Morton Coarse Kosher Salt); ¼ tsp Black Pepper (¼ teaspoon ground black pepper); 2 cloves Garlic (2 cloves garlic); 2 cup Tomato Sauce (2 cups tomato sauce); ½ tsp Hot Sauce (½ teaspoon of your favorite hot sauce) — optional; 4 tsp Granulated Sugar (4 teaspoons sugar); 2 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar of Modena (2 tablespoon inexpensive balsamic vinegar); ¼ cup Raisins (¼ cup raisins); 2 tsp Capers (2 teaspoons capers); 12 tbsp Basil (12 fresh basil leaves (or 3 tablespoons dried basil)); 0 pieces Table Salt (Salt to taste)

A savory, sweet-and-sour Sicilian-style caponata with grilled eggplant, zucchini, and peppers, simmered in tomato sauce with olives, capers, and raisins.

75 minItalian

Servings4

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Vegetarian
Vegan
Gluten Free
Dairy Free
Pescatarian

Ingredients

For 4 servings

Green Olive½ cup · ½ cup oil cured green olives
Pine Nuts¼ cup · ¼ cup pine nuts
Eggplant1 piece · 1 large eggplant, about 8" (20.3 cm) long (about 1 1/2 pounds (680.3 g))
Zucchini1 piece · 1 zucchini, about 6" (15.2 cm) long (about 3/4 pounds (340.2 g))
Red Bell Pepper1 piece · 1 medium sweet red bell pepper
Yellow Onion1 piece · 1 medium onion
Celery2 pieces · 2 celery stalks
Olive Oil6 tbsp · 6 tablespoons good quality olive oil
Kosher Salt¼ tsp · ¼ teaspoon Morton Coarse Kosher Salt
Black Pepper¼ tsp · ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Garlic2 cloves · 2 cloves garlic
Tomato Sauce2 cup · 2 cups tomato sauce
Hot Sauce½ tsp · ½ teaspoon of your favorite hot sauce · optional
Granulated Sugar4 tsp · 4 teaspoons sugar
Balsamic Vinegar of Modena2 tbsp · 2 tablespoon inexpensive balsamic vinegar
Raisins¼ cup · ¼ cup raisins
Capers2 tsp · 2 teaspoons capers
Basil12 tbsp · 12 fresh basil leaves (or 3 tablespoons dried basil)
Table Salt0 pieces · Salt to taste

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Steps

1Prep. Remove the pits from the olives and chop into 1/4-inch (6.3 mm) chunks. Set aside. Put the pine nuts into a dry frying pan over medium heat and toast them until they get some color. Be careful not to burn them. Set aside.
2Prep some more. Cut the eggplant and zucchini into 1-inch (25 mm) slices, discarding the ends. Peel the onion and leave the ends on. Cut in half. Remove the leaves from the celery and clean it well. Save the leaves for another dish such as, they are an underestimated herb. Cut the bell pepper in half and remove the stem and seeds. Put them all in a big bowl, sprinkle with salt and pepper, pour in about 3 tablespoons olive oil (about half the amount in the recipe).
3Fire up. Prepare a grill for medium high direct heat cooking. Place the eggplant, onion, zucchini, celery, and bell pepper on the grill. Cook the until the eggplant and zucchini are starting to brown on both sides, until the onions get some grill marks, and until the celery begins to get flexible. Remove from heat.
4Simmer. In a large frying pan or Dutch oven, pour in 3 tablespoons of olive oil to cover the base of the pan with a thin layer. Warm to medium high. Mince or press the garlic, stir it in and let it cook until it is soft but not brown, about 1 minute. Add the tomato sauce and bring to a boil. Mix in everything else except the pine nuts and fresh basil (if you are using dried basil, add it now). Reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, until the sauce is thick, about 30 minutes.
5Serve. Chop the basil, add it to the pot, stir in the toasted pine nuts, and season to taste. You can serve it warm, spooned on slices of baguette, or cool, and chill for a few hours or overnight.