Pepper and Potato Stew (Slane Paprike sa Lukom I Krompirom)

I just found this recipe in a plastic bag with others and this brought back memories of Baba's kitchen smells. Peppers frying always smelled wonderful! She said her mother would make this back in Lika as a light supper and served it with Lepinja and some sort of roasted meat. Baba often served it as a sauce over rice, wide noodles, or pasta such as Rigatoni or Linguini. It is also great by itself for a vegetarian meal and is quite simple to make.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 large red, yellow, orange, and green peppers seeded and sliced into thin strips
2 large onions thinly sliced
4 large potatoes peeled and cubed or sliced and boiled until tender
1 large can diced tomatoes in juice or 4 large tomatoes seeded and cut into chunks
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
3 Tablespoons balsamic Vinegar
1 Tablespoon Vegeta (optional)
Salt and course black pepper to taste (Sea salt is excellent for this)

PREPARATION:

Heat oil in a large skillet or dutch oven over medium heat. Add peppers; cook stirring until they begin to soften for about 10 minutes. Stir in the onions and garlic and cook until they begin to soften stirring so the peppers an onions do not burn, about 5-6 minutes. Pour in the tomatoes with the juice and cook 5 minutes. Add the vinegar, vegetables, salt and pepper. Cook while stirring until all vegetables are tender and the juices thickened for about 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat and serve or set side while you prepare the pasta or rice. If you made pasta, put the pasta in a large serving bowl and ladle the sauce over it and then toss. Put some extra sauce in a small bowl and set on the table so your guests can add more if they wish.