Chicken, Tzaziki, and Caponata

Thursday 11 August

Barbara had already made the caponata from some adorable vegetables she bought at the Northside Farmers' Market; and the tzaziki was left over from Saturday.  With those strong flavors, all we needed was some simply-sautéed boneless chicken breasts.

So here's the way the caponata was done:

Caponata

1 lb eggplant (preferably small) washed and cut into half-inch cubes

olive oil

6 garlic cloves, chopped

1 tablespoon double-concentrated tomato paste from a tube

about a pound of fresh, finely chopped tomatoes, with juice

3 celery ribs, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 small onion, chopped

2 banana peppers, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1/2 cup green olives (3 oz), pitted and cut into 1/4-inch pieces

2-3 Tbsp. capers, drained

2-3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

2 Tbsp. sugar

1/2 tsp or less salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

garnish: handful chopped flat-leaf parsley

Make tomato sauce: heat a tablespoon of oil in a saucepan and add most of the garlic; saute until golden, about a minute.  Add paste and cook a minute more, then add tomatoes and let simmer ca. 20 mins. until thick.

Oil a large skillet generously and stir-fry eggplant in one layer (in batches if necessary, adding oil as needed) until brown and tender, ca. 5 mins each.  Let drain on paper bag.

In same oiled pan, add first onion, then celery, then peppers, and finally rest of garlic, and fry until tender, about 10 minutes total.  Add tomato sauce, eggplant, olives, capers, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper, and let simmer for 15 minutes more.  Cool to room temperature; let chill in fridge overnight.  Serve sprinkled with parsley, either cold or at room temperature.