Hearty Vegetable Sauce: Recipe

If you're like most people I know, you don't have a recipe for "sauce." Likely it comes out slightly different each time you make it - even if you use all the same ingredients each time. But tonight I needed to use a perfectly perfect eggplant before it became a victim of science in the fridge. My husband loves Caponata so I used that as my inspiration and came up with a thick and hearty sauce that was delicious and healthy.

Even with this recipe, be sure to experiment and use what you have on hand...

Hearty Vegetable Sauce
1/4 cup olive oil + 2 tablespoons
1 1/2 cup eggplant cut into small pieces (about 1/2 a large eggplant)
1 medium onion, quartered
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 medium green zucchini cut into small pieces
28-oz. can whole peeled tomatoes, lightly pureed
1/2 cup black Kalamata olives - pitted and finely chopped
1/2 cup red wine

In a food processor, chop the onion into fine dice and saute in heated olive oil over medium-high heat until soft and translucent - about 5 minutes.  Meanwhile, chop the eggplant and zucchini into smaller pieces and add them to the pot. Pour in the additional two tablespoons of oil and mix well. Lower the heat to a medium and saute about 10 minutes.  Add in the red wine and saute another 10 minutes until the vegetables are soft. Add in the herbs, garlic and olives and saute another 5 minutes over medium heat - stir well. Finally, add in the tomatoes and simmer about 20 minutes longer.