Homemade Caponata Recipe

After two weeks travel in India during the hot and humid monsoon season, reentry to New York this week seemed especially frigid.

Isn’t mid-September usually warm and balmy? With just a nip of cool air in the mornings and evenings? We’re not supposed to weather tornadoes here in the tri-state area.

“Summer’s lease hath all too short a date…”

It seems summer has fled. And I didn’t get nearly my fill of fresh local tomatoes. But do I ever?

Meanwhile, over at my local farm stand, end-of-summer produce is abundant. Homemade Caponata is the perfect way to use the last of the season’s bounty.



Simmered eggplant, onions, tomatoes and capers meld with currants, cocoa, vinegar and a touch of Demerara sugar to make an unctuous sweet-and-sour spread.

Try Homemade Caponata on bruschetta or crackers as an appetizer. Or spread it on thick slabs of Italian bread with a slice of Monterey Jack cheese for a delicious, stick-to-the-ribs vegetarian sandwich.

Homemade Caponata Recipe

1/3 cup virgin olive oil
1 large Spanish onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, sliced
3 tablespoons currants
1-2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
2 medium eggplant, cut into 1/2″ cubes (about 4 cups)
2 tablespoons Demerara sugar
1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, chopped or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 cup basic tomato sauce—or used canned sauce
4 plum tomatoes, peeled
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup olives, pitted and roughly chopped
4 tablespoons capers
3 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped

1. To drain excess moisture from eggplant, prepare as follows: Wash and pat dry eggplant. Chop eggplant into 1/2″ cubes and toss with 1 teaspoon salt. Set cubes in colander to drain for 1/2 hour or more. Pat dry with paper napkins.
2. In the meantime, chop onions and celery.
3. In a large Dutch oven or heavy pan, heat olive oil over medium flame.
4. When oil is fragrant, toss in onions, celery, pepper flakes and currants. Lower flame slightly and fry vegetables, stirring occasionally, until they soften slightly, about 5-7 minutes,
5. Add eggplant, Demerara sugar and cocoa. Stir and fry for another 5-7 minutes.
6. Add tomato sauce, thyme, vinegar, olives, capers, salt and pepper, lower flame and simmer for another 15 minutes, adding water a tablespoon at a time if mixture becomes too dry. Spoon caponata into an airtight container and store in fridge.
7. Caponata may be served cold, but for fullest flavor, warm to room temperature.

Makes around 5 cups.