When Victor and I were much younger, we thought nothing of having a liberal portion of a mixed vegetable dish such as this alongside some breaded veal cutlets, which would have been preceded by pasta or risotto. Who would have believed then that, some decades later, we would look forward to making a whole meal out of just vegetables? And a satisfying meal it can be in all respects. It is a cheery combination of colors, the potatoes supply ample bulk, and the chorus of flavors—sweet and fragrant, ripe and pungent—entertains the palate from the first bite to the last. The juices produced are so delicious that it would be a regrettable oversight not to provide some good crusty bread, possibly lightly grilled, to help sop them up.
When I have too many guests to serve sitting down, this is one of the dishes I am likely to put on the buffet table, and it is unfailingly one of the first to disappear.