Fixin's for People Who Like Food
Ratatouille Sandwich
August 9th, 2025
This Recipe creates 4 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Ratatouille, originating from Nice, France, (sometimes called "Ratatouille Niçoise") is a French Provençal dish made with stewed vegetables, typically including eggplant. In the movie by the same name, we were introduced to a recipe called Confit Biyaldi, that is more of a casserole than a stew. This recipe, turns Ratatouille into a sandwich, with the addition of bacon, Black Forest Ham, and sliced sharp cheese such as Gruyere, Manchego, or Smoked Gouda. I often make a larger batch of roasted vegetables to keep on hand. The vegetables can be refrigerated in an airtight container up to 3 weeks.
Ingredients:
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12 ounce Package Sliced Bacon, thick cut
2 Medium Eggplants
4 Large Zucchinis
2 Red Bell Pepper
Ajvar Roasted Red Pepper Spread
2 Roma Tomatoes
8 ounce Black Forest Ham, sliced
8 ounce Sliced Gruyere
4 Store-bought or Homemade Hoagie Rolls
Salt
Olive Oil
Balsamic Vinegar
Directions:
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Fry the Bacon slices until they are crispy, but still somewhat pliable.
Reserve the Bacon for later.
Use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin from the Eggplant.
Trim off the stem and the calyx.
Cut the Eggplant as thinly as possible, into 1/8 inch thick planks.
Arrange the Eggplant Planks on a large sheetpan.
Liberally Salt each side of each Eggplant Plank.
Rest for 1 hour to draw the excess moisture from the Eggplant Planks.
Rinse each Eggplant Plank to remove the excess salt. Discard any liquid.
Use paper towels or a clean tea towel to dry each Eggplant Plank.
Cover a large sheetpan with parchment paper.
Cover the sheetpan with a single layer of Eggplant Planks.
Clean the Zucchini and trim off the stem.
Cut the Zucchini into 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick planks.
Reserve the Zucchini Planks for later.
Clean the Red Bell Pepper.
Cut the Bell Pepper in half, lengthwise. Remove the stem, seeds and pith.
Reserve the Bell Pepper Slices for later.
Slice the Roma Tomato, lengthwise into 1/4 inch thick slices.
Preheat the oven to 400° F.
Brush a thin layer of Olive Oil to both sides of the Eggplant planks.
Brush a thin layer of Olive Oil to both sides of the Zucchini planks.
Place a large sheet of parchment paper into a large sheetpan.
Arrange the Eggplant, Zucchini, and the Red Bell Pepper halves on the parchment paper.
Roast the Vegetables in the oven for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, flip each Vegetable plank.
When the Eggplants become crispy, remove them from the oven before they begin to blacken.
Roast the remaining Vegetables in the oven for another 15 minutes.
Broil for about 3 minutes, to ensure that the Zucchini and the Red Bell Peppers have a light char.
The Zucchini and the Red Bell Peppers should all still be soft and pliable.
Remove the sheet pan from the oven.
Sprinkle with a splash of Balsamic Vinegar and a dash of Salt.
Slice open each Hoagie Roll.
Arrange them on a large sheetpan.
Spray or brush each Hoagie Roll with a thin layer of Olive Oil.
Broil for 1 to 3 minutes, (at least 12 inches away from the Broiler) until each bun is lightly toasted.
Do not burn.
After the rolls have finished toasting, spread a liberal amount of Ajvar Roasted Red Pepper Spread on each roll.
Build the Sandwich
Add Eggplant Planks to the Bottom Hoagie Roll.
Cover with Zucchini Planks, ensuring that the Zucchini covers all the way to the edges.
Place 2 quarters of the Red Bell Pepper.
Add 2 slices of Bacon, laying next to each other.
Add 2 slices of Tomatoes.
Add 2 slices of Black Forest Ham.
Add 2 slices of Gruyere Cheese.
Slice the sandwich in half.
Serve with a pickle Spear and a side of French Fries or a Green Side-Salad.
