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Vegetable tian
( SERVES 6 )

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Photo by Annabel Langbein Media

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This is a spectacular vegetable side dish, which can also stand in as a vegetarian main course. It's so pretty with its layers of vegetables and worth the little extra bit of effort that goes into its construction - layers of zucchini, tomatoes and eggplant atop a rich, fragrant onion base.

For the base

¼ cup	Olive oil
2	Onions, thinly sliced
2	Capsicums, one red, one yellow
3	Garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tsp	Thyme leaves
1 tsp	Finely chopped rosemary leaves
¼ cup	Basil leaves, chopped
1 pinch	Sugar

For the topping

2	Zucchini, green or yellow, use up to 3, sliced into 0.5cm rounds
5	Tomatoes, sliced thinly
2 small	Asian eggplants, sliced and in 0.5cm rounds, or 1 medium eggplant, quartered and thinly sliced
¼ cup	Basil leaves
3 Tbsp	Olive oil
2 tsp	Thyme
1 sprig	Rosemary

Directions

Preheat oven to 180C. In a shallow 30-33cm-diameter round pan heat oil and cook onions, peppers and garlic, stirring occasionally over medium-low heat until softened but not browned (about 10 minutes).
Add thyme and rosemary and season to taste with salt, pepper and sugar. Smooth evenly in pan.
Beginning at the outside of the pan, arrange overlapping slices of zucchini, tomatoes and eggplant on top of the onion mixture. Tuck basil leaves between the layers.
Season with extra salt and pepper, drizzle with extra oil, sprinkle with thyme and place a sprig of rosemary on top. Cover tightly and bake for 1½ hours.
Uncover and cook until the juices have all but evaporated (about 30 minutes). Vegetable Tian keeps for 3-4 days in the fridge and is delicious hot or cold.

More festive Easter recipes from Annabel

Perfect roast lamb
Festive gubana

From Essential Annabel Langbein (Annabel Langbein Media, $65), a compendium of Annabel’s best-ever savoury recipes and cooking tips. For more, visit annabel-langbein.com