My formative cooking years included a vegetarian coop and an Armenian roommate. From the two, one basic cooking strategy I have developed is: buy fresh vegetables, chop them up, saute them with whatever you have around, add canned tomatoes. Caponata falls into this strategy and having a recipe taught me to add red wine vinegar and put the tomatoes in later than I would have otherwise. The result is very tasty.
The recipe is really easy and can be modified to your heart’s/taste’s desire. I only faltered at toasting pine nuts. I am a terrible toaster. If anyone has any no-fail toasting tips, send them along. To quote a Food Network chef, “toasting takes as long as it takes you to forget that you’re toasting.” Which is exactly my experience both in the oven and on the stove.
Pictures and recipe after the jump…
