Pastitsio

There are a few dishes that I avoid making because they simply involve too many steps, like two-crust pies (just thinking about making the crust exhausts me) or lasagna (far too many components to prepare).  But sometimes, a complex dish is so good that I’m willing to put in the effort – like my chilaquiles verdes.

Pastitsio falls into this same category for me: labor-intensive, but delicious.  During my last visit to Texas, I found myself with plenty of time, so I set aside an afternoon to make it.

I used a Barefoot Contessa recipe for reference, but the 2 pounds of beef and lamb she calls for seemed too heavy; I settled on one pound of ground lamb and a one pound eggplant, roasted.  The lamb and eggplant are simmered in a tomato sauce that’s fragrant with cinnamon, then combined with pasta and topped with a rich béchamel.

Step one involved dicing the eggplant, salting it, and rinsing and squeezing out all the liquid.  Then, into the oven to be roasted.  A one pound eggplant doesn’t yield much once it’s cooked, but the small pieces were tender and tasty.

My mother and I decided to grind our own lamb with the Kitchen Aid meat grinder attachment; it was fairly quick, and the resulting meat seemed to cook faster than pre-ground, plus I knew that it was impeccably fresh.  I also found myself processing the canned tomatoes in the Cuisinart, since “ground” apparently means “chunky pieces” in canned tomato-speak.

Soon my sauce was finished and my mouth was watering, but there was still a long way to go until it would be time to eat.  I made the pasta (elbow macaroni, since that’s the closest to what I remember at my old favorite Greek spot, Ikaros), then made the béchamel, which contains an over-the-top amount of butter, cream, and Parmesan.  No surprise, it’s fantastic.

At long last, it was time to assemble the dish: sauce and pasta, tossed together, then a thick layer of béchamel (with some of the sauce stirred in) with a bit more Parmesan sprinkled over top.

The finished pastitso was a masterpiece – complex flavors and textures, hearty yet not heavy. It was a big hit at dinner that night, with leftovers for several lunches.

***

 Pastitsio

1 lb eggplant
1 lb ground lamb
Olive oil
1 large yellow onion
1/2 cup dry red wine
3 cloves garlic
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp fresh thyme
Pinch cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
28 oz can crushed or pureed tomatoes
3 cups elbow macaroni (dry)

Bechamel

1 1/2 cup skim milk
1 cup cream
4 tbsp butter
1/4 cup flour
1/8 tsp fresh nutmeg
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 cup Greek yogurt
2 eggs

 

Chop eggplant into 1/2 inch cubes and place in a colander.  Salt and let stand for 15-30 minutes, then rinse thoroughly and drain.  Squeeze out remaining liquid.  Toss lightly with olive oil and roast at 425 for about 25 minutes.  Set aside.

Dice onion and saute in olive oil until softened and slightly browned, 5-8 minutes.  Add lamb and cook until no longer pink, 6-10 minutes.

Add wine and cook for a couple of minutes.  Then add garlic and spices, and eggplant, and cook for 5 minutes more. Add tomato and simmer gently for about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling water, with minimal salt, until just al dente.  Drain and set aside.

When meat sauce is finished, reserve 1/2 cup of sauce and combine the rest with the pasta.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat the milk and cream in a small pan until just simmering.  In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and add the flour, whisking to combine, and cook for a few minutes.  Add the hot milk mixture, whisking constantly, and cook on medium-low heat for about 5 minutes, until thickened.

Remove from heat, and add 1/2 cup of the Parmesan and the nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Add the reserved 1/2 cup of sauce and set aside to cool for 10 minutes or so.  Then stir in the eggs and Greek yogurt.

Layer the meat and pasta mixture into a 9×13 inch baking dish, then top with the bechamel sauce.  Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese over the bechamel.

Bake ~50 minutes or until the top of the pastitsio is golden brown.