This is a very healthy veggie meal that’s pretty easy to cook. The real key is cooking each of the vegetables separately to preserve their flavour and avoid mush.

Ingredients

• 2 red onions
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 aubergine (eggplant)
• 2 courgettes (zucchini)
• 2 ripe tomatoes
• 1 red pepper
• 1 yellow pepper
• can chopped tomatoes
• olive oil
• balsamic vinegar 1tbsp
• worcestershire sauce 1tsp
• 1/2 lemon - zest
• butter
• thyme - sprig, picked
• basil - few leaves, chopped
• (optional) cheese to top - mozzarella

Method

As mentioned above, we’re going to cook each ingredient separately to preserve the flavour. I tend to prepare the next set of vegetables whilst one set is cooking, and keep going on like that.

Start with a big frying pan, and a large baking dish (with lid/foil) to one side. Heat the frying pan to medium, add some olive oil and add finely sliced red onions and roughly chopped garlic. Cook together until the onion is just beginning to have some brown edges, and then season and put into the baking dish.

Next up is the aubergine, having been sliced and sat on some kitchen roll to dry before being chopped some more. Add to the pan with some more oil, seasoning with salt and pepper as it cooks. When done (not chewy any longer), place in the baking dish.

Next, red and yellow peppers chopped up, cooked in olive oil. Let them retain a little bite and don’t over-cook. Put in baking dish.

Next, courgette, medium sliced, but this time cook in butter. Into the baking dish.

Finally, chop and de-seed the tomatoes, adding to the pan. Add the canned tomatoes too, as well as the basil. Cook until the tomatoes begin to soften and then into the baking dish too.

Stir everything in the baking dish, adding the balsamic, lemon zest, worcestershire sauce, thyme. Season.

Place in the baking dish, cover, and place in a pre-heated (375F) oven for 30 minutes. Add the cheese (if using) for the final 10 minutes and flip over to grill/broil to make it brown and bubbly.

Serve with bread.