Marvelous Mediterranean Vegetables

The first Brandywine of the year turned red on Tuesday, the same lead plant that always ripens first, and I cut it Thursday when the shoulder had softened slightly under my thumb. I sliced it over the sink with a knife that needed no additional pressure, the fruit falling open to the counter, and I ate it standing there with coarse salt and nothing else. This is the ritual. The first Brandywine of the year is eaten standing, alone, at the cutting board, with salt, and nothing else is permitted to dilute the occasion. It tasted of summer in the specific Vermont way — full-acid, full-sugar, warm from the vine even after cutting, the particular depth that comes from sixty-some days of Vermont sun and the black soil of this hillside.

Teddy sent me a photograph of his collaborative dinner menu proposal — four courses, handwritten on a card. First course: cold cucumber soup with crème fraîche and dill (his version of Helen's 1986 recipe from the notebook post, adapted). Second course: pan-seared scallops with a corn beurre blanc and herb oil. Third: a roasted lamb leg with flageolet beans and a rosemary jus. Fourth: a tarte tatin of peaches. I read it twice and then called him. I told him that was an excellent and ambitious menu and asked who the menu was for. He said: for however many people are at the table, he wanted to do it right. I told him we could talk through the technical points when he arrived and that the scallop-corn beurre blanc combination was inspired. He said he had been thinking about corn season timing for two weeks.

The dill pickles came out of their brine period Saturday and I opened the first jar. The garlic had mellowed properly, the dill was present without dominating, and the pickle had the correct snap — not soft, not rubbery, the brine having penetrated the flesh while leaving the cell structure intact. I ate three standing at the counter and noted in my kitchen journal: good year. This is the notation I use when a batch meets the standard without requiring comment about what I would change. Good year is the highest designation.

After a week that began with the first Brandywine eaten standing over the sink and ended with a jar of pickles rated “good year” in the kitchen journal, I found myself wanting something that honored all of it — the acid, the depth, the particular abundance of a Vermont summer arriving at once. The Mediterranean approach asks nothing of vegetables except that they be good, and right now, everything in the garden is exactly that. This is the dish I make when I do not want technique to obscure what the season has given me.

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 35 minutes | Total Time: 55 minutes | Servings: 6

Ingredients

1 medium eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 medium zucchini, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
2 bell peppers (1 red, 1 yellow), seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1 large red onion, cut into wedges
1 cup pitted Kalamata olives
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, torn
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Instructions

Preheat and prepare. Heat the oven to 425°F. Line two large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
Salt the eggplant. Spread the eggplant cubes in a colander, toss with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, and let drain for 10 minutes. Pat dry thoroughly with paper towels — this step ensures the eggplant roasts rather than steams.
Toss the vegetables. In a large bowl, combine the eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers, red onion, and garlic. Drizzle with olive oil and toss well to coat. Add the oregano, thyme, red pepper flakes, remaining salt, and black pepper and toss again until evenly distributed.
Arrange and roast. Spread the vegetables in a single layer across the two prepared baking sheets, making sure not to crowd them. Roast for 20 minutes, then add the cherry tomatoes and olives to the pans. Return to the oven and roast for an additional 12–15 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and the edges have caramelized.
Finish and serve. Transfer the roasted vegetables to a large serving platter. Drizzle with the lemon juice, scatter the feta and torn basil over the top, and taste for salt. Serve warm or at room temperature — this dish is equally good either way.

Nutrition (per serving)

Marvelous Mediterranean Vegetables — When the Garden Gives You Everything at Once