On August 29, 2023 our FREE Kids Kits will return at the Champaign Farmers Market. This month’s kit will have all of the ingredients to make that Ratatouille, a recipe card, and a link to the recipe and accompanying video on our website. You can also watch the YouTube videos on The Land Connection’s YouTube Channel.

Each kit will include local, in-season produce or products that can be purchased at the farmers market so that kids learn about seasonality and how to prepare local food. It also creates a great opportunity to engage kids in the kitchen through a family-centric activity.

Print Recipe

Ratatouille

Equipment

• 1 Cutting Board
• 1 Sharp knife
• 1 Oven-safe dish
• 1 Small bowl
• 1 Kid safe scissors optional

Ingredients

• 1 small eggplant
• 1 medium zucchini
• 2 slicing tomatoes
• 1 red onion
• 1 yellow or orange bell or bullhorn pepper
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 14 ounces canned tomato sauce
• 1 fresh bread
• feta or other cheese optional

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Slice the vegetables evenly and set them aside.
• Chop herbs and add half to small bowl with olive oil, minced garlic, salt & pepper.
• Open can of tomato sauce, pour into oven-safe baking dish and spread evenly. Top with remaining herbs.
• Arrange the sliced vegetables evenly on top of the tomato sauce starting by the outer edge of the dish. Continue adding the vegetable slices in alternating patterns to the middle of the pan.
• Drizzle olive oil & herb mixture evenly over the top of the vegetables.
• Cover pan with foil and bake for about 30 minutes covered, then uncover the pan and bake until the vegetables are softened and slightly charred, about another 20 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and serve hot with sliced fresh bread.

Notes

Originating in France, ratatouille is a dish of various vegetables stirred and stewed together until they begin to melt into each other. While you may have seen a variation of this dish made famous in the 2007 Disney animated film Ratatouille, our version is packed full of the best summer vegetables: Eggplant, bell peppers, zucchini, summer squash, onions and tomatoes that is easy for children to assemble and families to eat!