Ode to Caponata

I was out of town Sunday (per my previous post) so was not able to make anything for you folks. As I was sitting in my office today I was thinking of all the things that make me happy because currently work is not doing it for me. And Eureka! I thought of Caponata.

Oh Caponata. How do I love thee…Let me count the ways. Caponata is, very much, a labor of love mainly because you can get it canned. Jarred up. Shipped to your local grocer from somewhere out there. I urge you to make it on your own though. Trust me. You will be SO happy you did!

There is much dicing, and sautéing, and simmering involved. When it is all said and done though, it is unbelievable. And it gets even more unbelievable with each passing day. You can serve it up as an appetizer or toss some pasta in and main course it. It’s versatile. It’s satisfying. It’s brilliant. And it is always a journey because you can throw anything and everything in there in addition to the main ingredient – eggplant. (Mmmmm….eggplant.) I had yellow squash sitting in my evil fridge* so I tossed some in and it came out really well.

Sidebar - I swung by Trader Joe’s after work to pick up a few things to make my Caponata. Can I tell you? It’s more happening than the local bar on a Friday night. There are some seriously beautiful people frequenting Trader Joe’s after 5. Trader Joe should consider diversifying from amazing grocer to amazing matchmaking service. Seriously. I’m not even kidding. Love at first sight over organic baby arugula? Believe it. I fell in love at least twice while I was there.

Not only will you be rewarded with amazing Caponata if you make it on your own, but if you venture to your local Trader Joe’s to pick up ingredients you may find the love of your life! Isn’t that motivation enough to try this???

I think so…and here’s my recipe for it. Cute boy (or girl) not included.

Makes approximately 4 cups

1 medium size eggplant – chopped
4 to 6 stalks celery - chopped
2 medium sized onions chopped – white or red – doesn’t matter
2 medium yellow squashes sliced
1 6oz can of tomato paste**
3 plum tomatoes – chopped**
1/3rd cup green olives drained and roughly chopped
4 tablespoons olive juice – I love olives. Purely optional. ***
1/3rd cup capers
¼ cup red wine vinegar or white wine vinegar
¼ cup balsamic vinegar (My secret ingredient. So good!)
½ cup golden raisins – I was a bit generous here because I love raisins. Your call.
Olive oil
1½ cups water
Salt – to taste. I find myself putting in 1 tablespoon.
Sugar – to taste. I find myself putting in at least 2 tablespoons.
Red pepper flakes – I like heat. Your call.

Before we begin, let me say that I would recommend you use a nonstick pan if you have one. Eggplant sticks and requires a lot of oil. A nonstick will make life easier when sautéing the eggplant and will keep you from using up all of your olive oil.

In the nonstick pan pour in oil to coat the bottom of pan. Heat up oil over high heat and add celery and onions. Lower heat to medium high and sauté until onions and celery start to brown. Remove from pan.
Add more oil if necessary and add eggplant. Saute until eggplant is browned nicely. Remove from pan.
Add more oil if necessary and add squash. Saute until nicely browned.
Add back into pan eggplant, celery and onion. Add olives, olive juice, capers, raisins, sugar and salt. Stir.
Add balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, tomatoes, tomato paste and water. Slowly stir and mix everything together. Once Caponata starts to boil, lower heat and cover. Let simmer for 30 to 45 minutes – or until the Caponata has reduced down to your desired consistency. Make sure to stir in between and taste along the way. Adjust salt and sugar as needed while it simmers away.

Once Caponata is prepared to your liking, remove from heat and let cool. I placed mine in a Pyrex dish right away and let sit uncovered for a bit so it could cool down. Make sure to put it in the fridge once it is cooled down. It will last you approximately one week. Caponata does get better with each passing day. I, of course, inhaled a good bit right away but did manage to save a bit for tomorrow. Can’t wait!!!



* My evil fridge. I didn’t check my fridge setting until it was too late. I bought the most beautiful head of romaine lettuce at the farmers market on Saturday. I opened my fridge after getting back from Virginia Sunday night and gasped in horror. My Romaine had been murdered. The fridge had killed it. Only then did I notice that my fridge was set to the coldest setting. I’ve been messing with it every since trying to get it to the right temp which is hard because the settings are 1 through 9. What the hell is that? How cold is 9? How cold is 1? Grr…Currently I have it at 7. This is why I had to use the yellow squash in my recipe. I had to save it before the evil fridge did away with it.

**Most recipes call for a big can of peeled tomatoes – 15oz I think. I did not have any on hand but did have plum tomatoes and tomato paste so made the best of it. Turned out wonderfully!

***As I was merrily chopping up my olives I realized I had a bottle of wine in the fridge. And I could drink it! Because I am a big girl. Funny how the olives got me to think about the alcohol. Oh my pretty little subconscious. Always coming up with clever associations. The wine I sipped on as I cooked away was a Rene Barbier Mediterranean White Catalunya. It’s clean, crisp and perfect to sip on as you slave away over the hot stove or bask in the summer sun. Thanks to my lovely O for the recommendation!