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Have you heard about the movie "Ratatouille" where a rat dreams of becoming a French chef? The Pixar movie is coming out June 29, and I know many food bloggers are looking forward to it.

What the heck is ratatouille anyway? (And no it’s not a dish made from rat - pleeeeease!) My French mom calls any kind of stew made from vegetables a ratatouille - especially when she cooks up those weird veggies from the Asian market. In actuality, it’s a traditional French Provençal stewed vegetable dish that can be served as a meal or as a side dish.

It’s featured in Usborne’s 30 Healthy Things to Cook and Eat pack of recipe cards. (If your child loves to cook - or you want to encourage them to cook something but cupcakes - get this! It has large, thick cardboard recipe cards. It’s simple but nutritious recipes make it terrific for kids six and up.)

Combine going to see the movie with cooking up a batch of ratatouille with your family. Maybe you use some of the vegetables or herbs in your garden. Or plan a shopping trip to a local produce stand or farmer’s market for the ingredients. Have the kids write up or draw their own shopping list.

Try some ratatouille on crusty French bread or with grilled meat or fish. Experiment by putting it with plain pasta or spooning it on to a baked potato.

Ratatouille
Serves 4

Ingredients:

1. 1 lb. of ripe tomatoes (about 4 medium ones)
2. 2 onions
3. 3 zucchini
4. 1 eggplant (weighing about 1 lb.)
5. 1 yellow or red pepper
6. 3 Tbsp. olive oil
7. 1 garlic clove, crushed
8. 1/2 tsp. dried oregano (or Italian seasoning)
9. 1/2 can (3 oz. tomato paste)
10. a pinch of salt and pepper
11. 8 large basil leaves ripped into small pieces

Directions:

1. Cut a cross into the bottom of each tomato. Put them into a heatproof bowl, then fill a second bowl with cold water.
2. Cover the tomatoes with boiling water. After 2 minutes, use a spoon to put them into the cold water for 2 minutes.
3. Life the tomatoes out, peel them and cut them into quarters.
4. Peel the onions, cut them in half and then chop them finely.
5. Cut the ends off the zucchini, then cut them in half lengthways. Cut them into strips, then cut them into chunks.
6. Cut up the eggplant the same way.
7. Cut the ends off the pepper and remove the seeds. Then cut it into thin strips.
8. Put the oil and onions into a large saucepan. Cook them over low heat for about 10 minutes, until the onions are soft.
9. Add the vegetables, garlic, seasoning, tomato paste, salt and pepper to the onions in the pan. Stir everything well.
10. Cook the ratatouille (keep stirring) on medium heat for about 3 minutes. Then turn down the heat, so that it is bubbling gently.
11. PUt a lid onto the pan. (Lift the lid and stir it every now and then.) Cook the ratatouille for 20 minutes, then remove the lid and cook it for 10 minutes. Stir in the bail. Serve.

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