Summertime and the Living is Easy……..Peperonata ~ Rustic Italian Pepper Stew Recipe

Peperonata – Rustic Italian Pepper Stew

Summertime and the Living is Easy……..

~ Peperonata ~

Rustic Italian Pepper Stew Recipe

Ella Fitzgerald

Summertime and the livin’ is easy
Fish are jumpin’ and the cotton is high
Oh, your daddy’s rich and your ma is good-lookin’
So hush, little baby; don’t you cry

One of these mornings you’re gonna rise up singing
And you’ll spread your wings and you’ll take to the sky
But till that morning, there ain’t nothin’ can harm you
With daddy and mammy standin’ by

One of these mornings you’re gonna rise up singing
And you’ll spread your wings and you’ll take to the sky
But till that morning, there ain’t nothin’ can harm you
With daddy and mammy standin’ by

Ella Fitzgerald sings Gershwin’s “Summertime” at a concert in Berlin/Germany

Peperonata ~ Rustic Italian Pepper Stew Recipe

Yes, I know that Summertime and Ella Fitzgerald have nothing to do with Italy and it’s most famous of rustic recipes, Peperonata ~ Rustic Italian Pepper Stew, but, somehow I feel they are linked to this lovely summer, (we are finally having) and this recipe epitomises all that is so sultry and summery in Ella’s rendition of Summertime, which is one of my favourite songs of all time………..long lunches, hot and drowsy afternoons, simple seasonal food, olive oil, scrubbed wooden tables, bees buzzing, the heady scent of full-blown roses, lavender and marjoram, chilled wine, soft cheese running of olive wood boards, crusty bread, old cracked bowls, ripe peaches, plump tomatoes, glistening peppers, old deck chairs, garden rugs, sun shades, shady trees, citronella candles, ice chinking in glasses, the distant clatter of plates being washed in old porcelain sinks, dusky black olives,  leaves rustling in a hot breeze, shimmering sea, blinding white sand, figs………

Peperonata ~ Rustic Italian Pepper Stew Recipe

…..and so it was that my random recipe this month was taken from a pile of books that I had out ready for summer cooking;  I asked Malcolm my husband to pick one of them, and then I shouted out a number for the page…….if you are confused, let me explain! Here the rules for Random Recipes, well some of them, as copied from Dom’s VERY lush and edible blog, Belleau Kitchen…….

…..”the rules
1 – number your books/place them in a pile/throw them in the air
2 – randomly select a cook book
3 – open the cook book to a random page
4 – cook the exact recipe on that page… do NOT cheat… you are only cheating yourself
5 – you may adapt the recipe for health/dietary/product availability purposes only”………

And my random book was The Classic Mediterranean Cook Book…….and a book I have not looked at or used for ages, so a great random pick……

Classic Mediterranean Cookbook

…….and the random page threw up SEVERAL recipes, but I was true to the random recipe ideology, and I picked the first one on the page….which was Peperonata, as you can see from the photo!

Peperonata

I had some peppers, and LOTS of fresh tomatoes, but my peppers were all green…..so a trip to the local market was needed and I returned with YELLOW and RED peppers…….and what a cheerful sight they made when I had cut them all up and added them to the pan for the long, low and lingering stew…..

Peperonata

My Peperonata was a HIT on Sunday, when I had the “Tomato Grower” over for lunch, that’s our friend Jeff who brings over his home-grown tomatoes (and peppers, green beans, beetroot etc) regularly! I served it with a cheese board, baguette, home-made Sausage Plait with Sage and Onion (by popular request!) and couscous. We had chilled Rose wine and the meal was lazy and informal, and FULL of flavour! So, another wonderful recipe has been revived, due to the random recipe contest, as I haven’t made a  Peperonata for a long time, and it is such an easy and wonderfully seasonal recipe to make. I have copied the recipe below, with a few tweaks of my own, as usual! I plan to make another batch this weekend, as we have guests arriving, and it’s perfect to have a batch of this tucked away for an impromptu snack, if they arrive late, with crusty bread. That’s all for today, I am SLOWLY catching up with all my posts, see you tomorrow, have a great evening, Karen

Peperonata ~ Rustic Italian Pepper Stew Recipe

Peperonata – Rustic Italian Pepper Stew

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Serves	4 to 6
Prep time	10 minutes
Cook time	1 hour
Total time	1 hours, 10 minutes
Dietary	Vegetarian
Meal type	Lunch, Main Dish, Side Dish, Snack, Starter
Misc	Pre-preparable, Serve Cold
Occasion	Barbecue, Casual Party, Formal Party
From book	Classic Mediterranean Cookbook by Sarah Woodward

A simple Italian classic that brings out the best in fresh peppers. Can be prepared ahead of time as the flavours intensify. Makes a perfect accompaniment for any family meal, or a main meal for vegetarians when served with crusty bread.

Ingredients

• 500g mixed red, green and yellow peppers (cored and deseeded)
• 1 large onion (peeled and finely chopped)
• 2 to 4 cloves garlic (peeled and finely chopped)
• 600g plum tomatoes (peeled and finely chopped. )
• 400g tin of chopped plum tomatoes
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• oregano and oregano flowers

Note

A simple Italian classic that brings out the best in fresh peppers. Can be prepared ahead of time as the flavours intensify. Makes a perfect accompaniment for any family meal, or a main meal for vegetarians when served with crusty bread.

Directions

Step 1	Cut the peppers into strips. Warm the oil in a large frying pan or a wok, that has a lid and then add the peppers, onion and garlic. Cover and stew for 30 minutes.
Step 2	Add the fresh tomatoes and the tinned tomatoes, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Leave to simmer over a gentle heat, uncovered, for 20 to 30 minutes.
Step 3	Allow to cool before serving, and garnish with oregano leaves and/or flowers. Serve with crusty bread for a light lunch or summer supper.

Peperonata ~ Rustic Italian Pepper Stew Recipe

Have you got a favourite pepper recipe?

What is your most-loved Italian recipe?