Wordless Wednesday - Fennel Risotto with Lamb Sausage

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Béchamel Bliss - Moussaka

OK, I will admit it... When I was a child, I hated Eggplant.  Loathed, detested and abhorred it.  Unfortunately for me, my mother absolutely loved the it.  So much so, in fact, that we grew the vile vegetable in the garden every single year.  Eggplant here, eggplant there.. Eggplant everywhere!   Nightmares, where I was eaten my a giant eggplant, occurred quite frequently... 

Did I mention that I reviled Eggplant?

I tried to explain to my mother that since I actually liked Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli and Spinach, that I should not be forced to consume eggplant. Unfortunately, this bit of logical thinking was not in sync with my mother's belief in a well rounded diet.  In protest, I would shun the vile vegetable on my plate; refusing to submit to her dictatorial edict.  This battle of wills would last several hours.  Abandoned by the rest of the family, I would continue to sit at the table with that repugnant rutabaga wannabe mocking me from my plate.

Looking back, I realize that there was no possible way I could have ever won the war.  True to rights, after about 2 hours of staunch rebellion, I would finally give in and eat the noxiously nauseating and nefarious nightshade. (sigh)

Now that I'm an adult, I have come to regret some of my childhood willfulness, (not all of it, mind you) for it wasted a lot of my time, energy, and, as it turns out, delicious eggplant.  Yes, I said it.  Eggplant... I don't know when it happened or how it happened, but I just can't seem to get enough of it these days.

Personally, I think they have hybridized newer cultivars or improved old ones over the years.  Mom use to religiously salt the stuff and let it drain to remove the bitterness, yet it was still bitter and nasty when I was a kid.  Now, I find that salting removes the bitterness completely and, in some cases, salting isn't even necessary.  Thus, I have enjoyed many an Eggplant Rolatini, Eggplant Parmesan, Eggplant Charlotte, Eggplant Tempura and bountiful bowls of Ratatouille over the years.  But my all time favorite Eggplant dish has got to be Moussaka.

Even during my strained childhood relationship with Eggplant, I would always eat the Moussaka when mom made it.  She did resort to pureeing it the first couple of times, so I could not try to pick the eggplant out, (clever, she was) but in the long run it didn't matter.  She figured out fairly quickly that it was the ONE Eggplant dish that I would eat with no dinnertime defiance.

I think this was the very first Greek dish I was exposed to, though the origins of Moussaka as "Greek" are somewhat dubious at best.  More than likely, the dish is a spin-off of the Palestinian Musakhkan or the Turkish Musakka, for even on the Grecian peninsula, it is made differently according to locale...  In Macedonia, for instance, they layer Beef and Potatoes, then top it with a savory custard instead of Lamb and Eggplant with Béchamel.

Either way, the version that we know today, and the one than I bake, became popular until the 1920's thanks to Nicholas Tselemente.  I am assuming, since he was French, that the Béchamel topping is his doing, since I have seen some old recipes that use a yogurt and olive oil sauce on top with Kefalotyri, instead of Kasseri.  But, let us be reminded that this is really a peasant dish, like Ratatouille, and as such, it manifests with multiple modifications made by anybody and everybody that has ever prepared it over the years.  In essence, there is no wrong way or right way to make Moussaka.  You can make it all kinds of "snooty" if you want, but in the grand scheme of things, it's just down home, stick to your ribs, Mediterranean comfort food.

Me?  I am all for the Béchamel, man.  If ever there was a food that instilled rapture, it's cheese laced Béchamel.

Mom's Moussaka

Roasted Eggplant:
2 medium Eggplant, peeled and cut into 3/8 inch (10mm) slices
Olive Oil
Kosher Salt
Black Pepper

Béchamel:
2 TB unsalted Butter
2 TB AP Flour
2 cups (475ml) Whole Milk (room temperature)
Black Pepper
2 large Eggs

Meat Sauce:
A good glurg of Olive oil
1 1/2 lb (680g) ground Lamb (or Beef, but it really looses something)
1 large Onion, chopped
Black Pepper
1/4 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp dried Oregano
1/4 tsp dried Basil
1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
2 TB Flat Leaf Parsley, chopped
3/4 cup Tomato Sauce

Assembly:
Meat Sauce
Roasted Eggplant
1 1/4 cup (5 oz) (140g) Kasseri cheese, grated
Béchamel 
1/2 cup (2 oz) (57g) Parmigiano-Reggiano (or Myzithra)


Preheat the oven to 425 F degrees.
Peel the Eggplants and cut into slices of about 1/4-1/2 inch (10 mm).

Place on a large baking sheet and brush both sides of the eggplant slices with olive oil (don't be stingy with the oil, they will soak up a lot)

Season with Kosher Salt and Black Pepper.

Bake for 10-15 minutes, until eggplant slices just begin to brown.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Reduce the oven to 350 F degrees.

While the Eggplant is baking, you can start the Béchamel.......
Melt the butter in a medium saucepan set over medium-low flame.

Once the butter is melted, add the Flour,

Whisk vigorously and constantly, cooking for one minute; until nice and bubbly (you only want a blonde roux)

Slowly pour in the milk, again whisking constantly to that the sauce remains smooth.

Continue cooking, whisking constantly.......

until it coats the back of a spoon, then remove from the flame.

Beat two eggs in a small bowl.

Condition the beaten Eggs by whisking in several spoonfuls of the hot Béchamel.

Then add the Eggs to the Béchamel sauce and whisk thoroughly until well combined.

Cover with plastic wrap on the surface to prevent crusting and set aside.

Now it's time for the meat sauce....
Heat Olive oil in a saute pan over medium flame.

Add the Onions and saute about 2 minutes before adding the Lamb (my lamb was pretty lean this time)

Once everything is nice and evenly browned and the onions are soft, add in the Black Pepper, Cinnamon, Oregano, Basil and Salt.

Add the Tomato sauce and bring to a simmer for 5 minutes.

Add the Parsley and simmer for an additional 5 minutes.

Remove from the flame and prepare for assembly......

Assemble:
Place 1/3 of the meat mixture in the bottom of a 9x13 pan.

Cover the meat by laying down 1/2 of the Eggplant slices.

Sprinkle this with about 1/2 cup of the Kasseri cheese.

Spoon 1/2 of the remaining meat mixture over the cheese.

Cover this with the remaining Eggplant slices.

Sprinkle with another 1/2 cup of Kasseri Cheese.

Spoon the remaining meat mixture over the cheese.

Now the best part, remove the plastic wrap from the Béchamel, and pour it all over the top. (It's a beautiful thing)

Smooth with a rubber spatula if necessary.

Sprinkle the remaining Kasseri over the Béchamel, then sprinkle with the Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Bake for 40-45 minutes, until the top is golden brown.

Let stand on the counter for about 15 minutes before attempting to cut into it.
Oh yea! THAT'S what I'm talkin' 'bout!

Mangia!!
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Childhood Flashbacks - Grandma's Meatloaf

In this world filled with foodie delights such as Quail Eggs, Morels, Fois Gras, Fennel Pollen and cuttlefish ink, nothing says lovin from the 40-something generation's oven more so than good ol' meatloaf. I don't know bout you, but I ate it a lot when I was a pup.

Yeah, it's not the most glamorous of dishes. It's not Avant-garde. It's not "Sexy". It's not Chic. It wont be showing up on the menu at a 3 Michelin star restaurant any time soon. Yet it is still adored. So lets give meatloaf it's due.

It brings us back to a simpler time. It's easy to prepare, though it takes time to bake, and darn it, it just tastes good. Simple and uncluttered. It's comfort food at it's best, with it's only possible rival being Macaroni & Cheese. It just gives us a sense of well being.

I was reminded of this when I visited my grandmother this last weekend. For all my experimentation in the kitchen, for all of my passion for Italian food, for all of my fascination over exotic ingredients, and for all of my supposed "refined" taste buds. I LOVE MEATLOAF. Especially my grandmother's meatloaf. So I made her recipe tonight, since I was finally smart enough to copy it down. And I just didn't get enough of it this weekend . ;)

Granted I use slightly different ingredients, but the premise is the same. Grandma uses Lipton Onion Soup mix and V8 juice. I went for the organic/low sodium options. Mainly because Lipton Onion soup contains Hydrolyzed Soy Protein and I need to avoid that as much as possible, and V8 juice is a little high on the sodium.

Grandma's Meatloaf

1 lb 10% ground Beef
1/2 lb ground Lamb
5 oz Vegetable Juice
1/2 cup Panko
1 envelope Onion Dip Mix (I go for Simply Organic brand)
1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, shredded
1 Large Egg
1/4 tsp Garlic powder
1/4 tsp Black Pepper
optional - 1 rib Celery, diced
optional - 1/2 Carrot, shredded

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Crush the Panko in a plastic bag. (cause it's a little to coarse for meatloaf)

Dump everything into a bowl.

Stir with a fork until well combined.

Form into a loaf and place in a roasting pan with a small rack in the bottom for the fat to drain away.

Bake for 45 minutes, then check the internal temperature (your looking for 160 degrees)

Bake an additional 10 -15 minutes if necessary then remove from the oven and tent for 10 minutes.

Slice and serve.

And tomorrow.... there WILL be meatloaf sandwiches. YAY!!

Mangia!!
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It's all Greek to Me - Pastitsio aka "Greek Lasagna"

Pastitsio, is basically Greek for "hodge podge". And a little bit of a hodge podge it is, but it's a delicious hodgepodge. :) I love anything with béchamel poured over the top, it causes me to reminisce about by mom's Moussaka.

There is a controversy however, regarding the construction of the dish. Some say lamb, some say beef. Others say cinnamon in the meat mixture, other say no way, because it clashes with the delicate nutmeg of the béchamel. I think that it really should not matter, I mean the name of the dish means Hodge Podge, by definition, this means what ever you have lying around, be it Cinnamon and Lamb, Beef and All-spice, even Turkey and more Nutmeg. This is how I made mine.

The one thing that is pretty much agreed on is the pasta... It's a long tubular noodle...

Since I am more familiar with Italian Pastas, I would describe it as a cross between Bucatini and Zitoni (or Long Ziti).

Pastitsio consists of 3 different parts. The Meat Sauce and béchamel can be prepared separately, chilled (covered) and then assembled at a later date if necessary (But no longer than 2 days) Simply bring everything to room temperature while boiling the pasta, and then proceed.

Pastitsio

Meat sauce:1 medium Red Onion, finely chopped
1 TB Olive Oil
2 Garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 LB Lamb, ground
3 Roma Tomatoes (seeded and sliced)
1 (15-oz) can diced Tomatoes
1 TB Thyme
1 tsp Kosher Salt or to taste
Black Pepper to taste

Béchamel:4 TB unsalted Butter
3 TB AP Flour
4 cups Whole Milk
1/2 cup Kefalotyri or Kasseri Cheese, grated
1/2 tsp grated Nutmeg
1 tsp Kosher Salt
3 large Egg Yolks

Assembly:1 lb Zitoni (Italian) or No 2 (Greek) Pasta
1/2 cup Kefalotyri or Kasseri Cheese, grated
3/4 cup Panko or 1/2 cup Regular Bread crumbs
3 TB Myzithra, Grated

Make meat sauce:

Sweat the onions in oil in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until softened.
Add garlic and sweat an additional minute.

Increase heat to high, add lamb, breaking up any lumps with a fork (you want a fine texture) until the meat is nice and browned, about 12 minutes.

Meanwhile, seed and slice up the Roma Tomato.

Pour off excess fat from skillet; then stir in sliced tomatoes, the Diced tomatoes, thyme, and salt.

Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, to allow some liquid to evaporated, about 30 minutes, but the meat mixture is still moist.

While the sauce is simmering:
Melt butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat.
Add the flour whisking until the roux is smooth, bubbly and pale gold in color.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in another saucepan over medium-low heat until it begins to simmer slightly (this is scalding)
Pour the hot milk into the roux fairly quickly (don’t drizzle it in like hollandaise), whisking constantly until very smooth.

Bring béchamel to a boil over medium heat for 1 minute, whisking constantly.
Remove from heat and stir in nutmeg, kefalotyri, and salt.
In a small bowl lightly beat yolks.

Condition the yolks by adding about 1 cup of the hot béchamel to the bowl, while whisking constantly, then add the yolk mixture to the sauce pan of béchamel; again whisking constantly.
The béchamel can be covered with a piece of buttered was paper laid on the surface.

You can stop here, and store everything in the refrigerator for tomorrow or continue on at this point.

Assemble pastitsio:
Preheat oven to 375
Boil the pasta in a large pot of salted water (1 TB for every 2 quarts of water) until al dente.
Drain pasta, then transfer to a large bowl and stir in 1/2 cup béchamel. (which I forgot to do this time)

Arrange half of pasta lengthwise in 1 layer in a large (7 1/2 x 11 x 2.5) baking dish. (Sorry, I have old Corningware baking dishes)

Add the meat sauce and spread evenly over the pasta layer.

Sprinkle with the Kefalotyri cheese,

then lay down another layer of pasta.

Spread remaining béchamel evenly over top layer of pasta.

Stir together bread crumbs and Myzithra cheese

and sprinkle evenly over top of pastitsio.

Bake on a rimmed baking sheet (cause pastitsio can bubble over just like lasagna) until crumbs are golden brown and sauce is bubbling, about 45 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let rest of at least 15 minutes before serving.

Nostimmos!!! (delicious)


Troo to peridromo! (my conjugation is probably off, but I tried)


Mangia!!
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