Pastitso Aka Greek Lasagna Recipes

GREEK PASTITSIO RECIPE (GREEK LASAGNA WITH BéCHAMEL)

Steps:

• To prepare this traditional pastitsio recipe (pastichio), start with the meat sauce. Place a large pan over medium-high heat and add the olive oil, the chopped onions and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato paste and the beef. Break up the meat with a wooden spoon and brown for 4-5 minutes. Pour in the red wine and wait to evaporate. Add the canned tomatoes, the sugar, cinnamon, clove, the bay leaf and season. Bring to the boil, turn the heat down and simmer with the lid on for about 30 minutes, until most of the juices have evaporated. (After the meat is cooked, discard the bay leaf, the clove and the cinnamon)
• Prepare the bechamel sauce for the pastitsio. Melt the butter in a large pan over low-medium heat. Add the flour whisking continuously to make a paste. Add warmed milk in small batches, whisking continuously in order to prevent your sauce from getting lumpy. If the sauce still needs to thicken, boil over low heat whilst continuing to stir. Remove the pan from the stove and add the egg yolks, salt, pepper, a pinch of nutmeg and the grated cheese (50g/ 1.7oz.). Whisk quickly, in order to prevent the eggs from turning an omelette! Season with salt to taste.
• Cook the pasta for the pastitsio 2-3 minutes less than the package instructions, so that they don't get mushy after turning out of the oven later. Drain the pasta and stir in the egg whites and the feta cheese (smashed with a fork) and mix gently with a spatula.
• For this pastitsio recipe you will need a large baking dish, approx. 25*35 cm / 10*14 inch. Butter the bottom and sides of a pan and assemble the pastitsio. Layer the pasta, top with the meat sauce and even out. Top the pastitsio with the bechamel sauce and smooth out with a spatula.
• Sprinkle the pastichio with grated cheese and bake in preheated oven at 180C (350F) Fan for about 40 minutes, until crust turns a light golden brown. Let the pastitsio cool down for a while before serving.

PASTITSIO II

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add ziti and cook until tender yet firm to the bite, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Melt butter until golden brown and pour over ziti, add Parmesan cheese, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Toss well. Cool briefly. Add eggs and toss again; set aside.
• To make meat sauce: Gently fry onion and garlic in butter in a skillet until onion is soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Increase heat and add ground beef; stir well. Cook until meat begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste, wine, broth, parsley, salt, and pepper. Cover and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes.
• To make cream sauce: Melt butter in saucepan, stir in flour and cook gently for 2 minutes. Pour in milk all at once and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil gently for 1 minute. Add nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Cool slightly before stirring in beaten egg. Transfer 1/2 cup of this sauce to the meat sauce.
• To assemble pastitsio: Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish. Spoon half of the prepared ziti evenly in the bottom and top with meat sauce. Top with remaining ziti. Pour on cream sauce and spread to completely cover ziti. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top.
• Bake in a preheated oven for 50 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting into squares.

PASTITSIO

Steps:

• Heat the oil in the pot
• Saute the onions and garlic
• Add the tomatoes, herbs, spices and salt and pepper and stir well
• Simmer until aromatic and thickened
• Turn off the heat
• Boil the pasta in saltwater until just cooked and drain
• Beat the two egg whites and add to the pasta along with the cheese and stir
• For the Bechamel, melt the butter in another pot or saucepan
• Add the flour and stir constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon until a smooth paste
• Gradually pour in the milk and whisk over heat until a thick creamy sauce is achieved
• Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg
• Add the eggs and 1/2 cup of cheese stirring constantly
• In a large, deep pan arrange half the pasta evenly inside
• Cover with the meat sauce
• Cover with the rest of the pasta
• Cover with the Bechamel sauce and garnish with the rest of the cheese
• Bake for approximately 1 hour or until Golden Brown

PASTITSO AKA GREEK LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• In a large skillet: melt 2 T butter, add onion and garlic and saute' until golden.
• Add remaining butter and the crumbled ground beef. Cook until no longer pink.
• Add remaining ingredients to the meat mixture and simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes or until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Mixture should be thick; set aside.
• MAKE THE WHITE SAUCE:.
• Melt butter in a medium saucepan. Whisk in the flour and cook for a 60 seconds.
• Gradually add the warm milk, whisking constantly, cook until thick and smooth. Add remaining ingredients to the sauce. Continue to stir and cook over low heat until all is thickened. Add more milk if too thick.
• In a separate bowl, beat eggs and add 1/2 cup of the sauce to the eggs to temper them.
• Whisk the egg mixture into the saucepan until well blended.
• In the mean time, BOIL PASTA.
• In a large stock pot, add salt to boiling water;.
• Add macaroni, stir gently and cook uncovered until tender, per package suggestions.
• Drain and rinse under cool water.
• Drain well and place in a large bowl, add 1/4 C melted butter, nutmeg, sherry if using, beaten eggs and grated cheese.
• Put half of the noodle mixture into a greased 9x9x2 baking pan (I used 7x12 glass casserole) a arranging the long noodles the length of the pan in straight rows.
• Top with all of the meat mixture.
• Cover the meat with the remaining half of the noodles.
• Pour the white sauce over the macaroni and bake for 25 minutes or until the top is delicately browned. Bake longer if necessary to heat through.
• NOTE: If you prep this ahead, and do not bake immediately, add more baking time. If refrigerated: bring to room temperature for 1 hour, bake for 30- 45 minutes.

PASTITSIO (GREEK LASAGNA)

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, saute onions in butter until opaque. Crumble beef into saucepan and brown.well. Drain off the fat.
• Add salt, pepper, tomato sauce, water and sugar. Stir well and simmer 35-40 minutes. At this point there should be very little water in the sauce.
• Remove from heat and cool. The meat sauce can be made ahead of time.
• In a saucepan, melt butter and then add in the flour, stiring constantly using a wire whisk. Gradually add the warm milk, stirring vigorously until sauce thickens. Add nutmeg, remove from heat and cool.
• When ready to use meat sauce, add half of the bread crumbs and 1 1/4 cups parmesan cheese. Stir well and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Cook the macaroni per package directions in boiling salted water until almost al dente. Drain well, stir in the olive oil and set aside.
• Butter an 11x17 inch baking pan and sprinkle with 2 tbsp bread crumbs. Spread half of the macaroni across the baking pan and sprinkle 1/2 cup cheese over top.
• Beat the eggs in a bowl using a wire whisk and add in 1/2 cup of the cooled bechamel sauce. Stir well and then add egg mixture into the rest of the bechamel sauce. Add the cheese and stir well.
• Cover macaroni layer with meat sauce. Pour half of the bechamel sauce over the meat and cover with remaining macaroni. Sprinkle 1/2 cup cheese over macaroni layer.
• Top macaroni layer with remaining bechamel sauce and top with remaining bread crumbs and cheese.
• Cook in the oven on a center rack for 50 minutes or until golden brown. Let sit 20 minutes to firm up before cutting and serving.
• This casserole freezes well and is easy to reheat. Place the frozen pastitsio, covered loosely with foil, in a 350 degree oven for 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours or until heated through.

PASTITSIO - GREEK LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Cook pasta and drain.
• While pasta is cooking, brown meat in heavy skillet, add onion and garlic and cook until soft.
• Mix in cinnamon and tomato sauce.
• In a saucepan, melt butter, whisk in flour and cook 1 minute, whisk in milk and simmer 20 minutes.
• Add beaten eggs and 1/4 cup parmesan to white sauce.
• In a buttered two quart casserole dish, add half pasta, top with meat mixture, add the rest of the pasta.
• Pour white sauce over the top.
• Sprinkle with remaining parmesan cheese.
• Bake 60 minutes.