CAPONATA

The recipe makes a chunky, saucy dish that is good as a side to meats or over pasta. If you want it to spread easily for serving with bread as an hors d'oeuvre, process it a few seconds in a food processor. Remember, just a couple of seconds. You do not want to purée it.

Most of the time, this dish keeps well refrigerated for 3 or 4 days. Occasionally, however, something about the seasonal variations in the eggplant shortens the dish's shelf life to only a couple of days. Freeze only as a last resort.

2 med. eggplants, unpeeled, cut into ½-inch cubes

1 T. salt

4 T. sugar

6 T. red wine vinegar (some balsamic!)

4 T. tomato paste

½ c. pure olive oil

1 lg. onion, coarsely chopped

3 cloves garlic

1 c. celery, cut on the diagonal into ½-inch pieces

1½ green bell peppers, cored and cut into ½-inch pieces

1 red bell pepper, cored and cut into ½-inch pieces

20 black pitted olives, coarsely chopped

¼ c. capers, drained

1 can tomatoes, blended

In a large colander, toss eggplant with salt and allow to drain for 30 to 60 minutes. Rinse eggplant with water and drain well.

Mix together sugar, vinegar, and tomato paste. Reserve.

Cover bottom of a large sauté pan with the olive oil. Place pan on medium-high heat. When olive oil is sizzling, add eggplant and sauté until it begins to glisten and soften. Add onion and continue cooking until eggplant begins to get very soft. Lower heat and add remaining vegetables. Cover and steam until peppers and celery are tender but crisp (about 5-10 minutes).

Remove from heat and toss with tomato paste mixture, olives, and tomatoes.