Greek Pastitsio

This was a blog dish I found a while back and have been wanting to try. My family has it at a local Greek restaurant and every time, my parents talk about how good the homemade version my grandmother used to make.

So when they were in town for a visit this weekend, I thought this was the perfect time to try it!

I found ground lamb at the local farmer's market that morning and mixed it with some local beef I had in the freezer. I only have pictures of the filling as I was making it...I just get in the middle of it and have a hard time remembering to stop and take pictures!

Pastitsio courtesy of Mandy Mortimer

Meat Sauce
- 1-2 lbs beef or lamb mince (or half and half!)
- 2 large cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 can tomatoes
- 1 Tbs tomato paste
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- olive oil
- salt and pepper

Macaroni Layers
- 1 box macaroni, penne, or ziti
- 3 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 C Parmesan/Romano cheese, grated

Bechemal
- 4 C milk
- 6 Tbs butter
- 8 Tbs flour
- 1 C Parmesan/Romano cheese, grated
- 4 egg yolks
- Nutmeg, salt, pepper

Topping
- 1/2 C Parmesan/Romano, grated
- 1 C shredded Mozzarella

1. Heat olive oil in large pot and saute onions until transparent. Add mince abs brown.

2. Meanwhile, bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta until al dente.

3. To mince mixture, add canned tomato, tomato paste, crushed garlic, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Set aside to cool.

4. When pasta is cool, mix with 1 C grated cheese and beaten eggs.

5. Melt butter on low heat. Stir in flour and mix with spoon to remove  lumps.

6. Remove from heat and gradually pour in milk, mixing with whisk constantly, until it thickens.

7. Stir in 1 C grated cheese, allow to cool slightly. Stir in egg yolks and mix until smooth.

8. In a lightly greased dish (8x8 or 9x13), spread half the past over the bottom of the dish. Evenly spread sauce over pasta. Pour bechemel over the pasta dn spread evenly.

9. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes.

10. Let sit for 30 minutes before serving, otherwise you have a sloppy mess!

That's all I'm awake enough to type now, but I've tried a few others this week I'll be passing on too you!