Very Tasty Veg Stew

This is a recipe that I saw Nigel Slater make, though of course I adapted it slightly to suit our tastes and fridge contents! The key to this recipe is cooking the veg in stages, rather than bunging it all in to make a mushy stew. The veg keep their individual flavours & textures, which makes it sing. This would also make a lovely pasta sauce, or a filling for a pie. Top with mash or pastry, or even grated cheese. This makes enough for 5 hearty appetites! It is also a perfect recipe for those following the 5:2 fasting diet - 1 large portion comes in at 150 calories. You get a lot of food & nutrients for your calories with this!

olive oil
a large aubergine, halved and thinly sliced
2, halved and sliced courgettes
2 peppers, (orange and red) peppers
2 onions, peeled and roughly sliced
2 garlic peeled and crushed
marjoram, parsley and thyme
3 medium, quartered tomatoes
12 or so cherry tomatoes
500ml jar or pack tomato passata or crushed tomatoes
3 bay leaves
basil leaves

Heat a shallow layer of olive oil in a large, low sided pan and brown the aubergine on both sides. Remove from pan and set aside. Fry each of the other vegetables separately in the order above, adding more oil as necessary, until each is pale gold. Remove as each one is ready and set aside.
When you reach the onions, cook in the same way along with the garlic but when cooked, don’t remove from the pan. Add the herbs, along with the tomatoes and allow to cook a little before transferring the cooked peppers back into pan. Add the passata and leave to simmer, with the lid on. When the sauce is reduced a little transfer the aubergine and courgettes back in to the pan along with the bay leaves and season. Taste – leave to simmer for a few more minutes. Stir gently with a handful of torn basil leaves and serve.