Mr Food Shortcut Moussaka

SHORTCUT MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add ground beef and chopped onion and cook until beef is brown, breaking up beef with fork, about 15 minutes. Mix in tomato sauce, red wine, parsley, crumbled oregano and ground cinnamon. Simmer until mixture thickens and is almost dry, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover tightly and refrigerate.)
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Melt butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add flour and stir 1 minute. Gradually add milk, whisking until smooth. Boil until thick, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes. Beat eggs in small bowl to blend. Whisk small amount of milk mixture into eggs. Return mixture to saucepan. Bring to boil, whisking constantly. Remove custard from heat. Stir in 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese. Season custard to taste with salt and pepper.
• Butter 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Arrange half of eggplant in bottom of dish. Season with salt and pepper. Spread meat mixture over. Top with remaining eggplant. Pour hot custard cheese sauce over eggplant. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan. Cover loosely with foil and bake 1 hour. Uncover and continue baking until golden and bubbling on edges, about 10 minutes longer. Cool 10 minutes.

MR. FOOD SHORTCUT MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In a large skillet, sauté ground beef over medium high heat for 7-8 minutes or until crumbly and only slightly pink.
• Drain off any excess liquid.
• Add eggplant to same skillet and sauté for 5-6 minutes or until eggplant starts to soften.
• Add garlic, cinnamon, 1 teaspoon of salt, and pepper.
• Mix well.
• Add spaghetti sauce and cook for 4-5 minutes or until hot.
• Grease a 7 x 11 inch glass baking dish with cooking spray.
• Place meat/eggplant mixture into baking dish, smooth the top.
• In a small bowl combine the eggs, milk, salt and mix until smooth.
• Pour over the meat mixture.
• Bake for 40-45 minutes or until custard is set.

SHORTCUT MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• In a colander, toss the eggplant and 1 teaspoon salt. Drain in the sink for 15 minutes.
• Heat oven to 450 degrees Toss the eggplant with the oil and spread on a large baking sheet. Roast, turning occasionally, until golden and tender, about 40 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees.
• Bring 6 cups water, the potatoes and 1 tablespoon salt to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Lower heat and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes; drain and return potatoes to the warm pot. In a small bowl, whisk together milk and egg yolk. Mash potatoes with milk-egg mixture, 1/2 cup cheese, butter, 1/4 teaspoon salt and nutmeg. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed.
• In a very large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the lamb, breaking it up with a fork as it cooks. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Push the meat to one side of the skillet and spoon off all but a thin layer of fat from the skillet. Add the onions and cinnamon sticks to the skillet. Cook until the onions are soft, about 5 minutes. Stir the lamb back into the onions and add the garlic and ground clove. Cook 2 minutes more. Stir in the tomatoes, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper. Cook until tomatoes are soft and the mixture is thick, about 10 minutes. Stir in the eggplant.
• Spoon into a 9-inch baking dish. Spread the mashed potatoes over the lamb. Sprinkle with bread crumbs and the remaining 1/4 cup cheese. Bake until top is golden brown and slightly crusty, about 30 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before serving.

VEGAN MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven at 400 degrees.
• 2. Slice your eggplant, potatoes, squash and zucchini*.
• 3. Sprinkle your eggplant with salt and layer and let drain in a colander for twenty-five minutes.
• 4. Spray cooking spray or use oil or Earth Balance on the cooking sheets before spreading eggplant, potatoes, zucchini and squash.
• 5. Bake for about 30 minutes; turn once.
• *don't bake the zucchini if you don't enjoy it super soft.
• 6. Chop onions; saute & add garlic when onions are just about done.
• 7. Add vinegar; reduce.
• 8. Add tomatoes w juice.
• 9. Add 1/2 can of lentils with about 1/2 the juice (or drain and use 1/2 can of water to reduce the sodium content).
• 10. Add Oregano, parsley and cinnamon; simmer for about 15 minutes.
• Bechamel: (this takes practice -- ).
• 11. Melt Earth Balance; stir in flour on medium heat.
• 12. Keep stirring and add milk slowly; stir out the lumps.
• 13. Set aside, and put on a lid (you don't want the sauce to thicken to much).
• 14. Stir in ground flaxseed (Optional).
• "Betta Feta Tofu".
• * (instead of making this, I just crumble tofu in a bowl; add the vinegar, and miso, and stir).
• 15. Cut tofu into 1" cubes.
• 16. Simmer in boiling water for about 5 minutes; drain.
• 17. Whisk water, miso, vinegar and salt; combine with tofu in a container; stir and refrigerate.
• (Crumble tofu cubes and use in place of feta -- use within 2 weeks).
• Assembly time!
• 14. Layer the potatoes in a casserole dish (suggested size: 9x13).
• 15. Followed by eggplant, squash and zucchini.
• 16. Add other vegetables if you used them.
• 17. Pour most or all of the tomato/onion sauce over top with crumbled feta.
• 18. Repeat the layers and sauce if there is any left.
• 19. Pour the bechamel (may need to be reheated); sprinkle with vegan cheese if you so desire; (looks very nice with the minced red pepper & tofu crumble).
• 20. Cover* & bake at 350° for an hour (remove cover for the last 15 minutes).
• * I am always too impatient to let the eggplants drain for 30 minutes beforehand, so I don't use a cover.
• Serve & Enjoy:).
• 421 cal (15g fat, 55g carbs, 20g protein).

MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prick eggplants several times with a fork. Rub a little olive oil into their skins. On a large baking sheet, roast eggplants until soft, about 30 minutes, turning frequently. Remove from oven and let cool. Cut into 1/2-inch-thick round slices.
• In a saute pan, heat 4 tablespoons olive oil over high heat and brown eggplant slices lightly on each side. Do this in batches, adding more oil as necessary. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with salt. Set aside.
• In a saucepan heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add 1 chopped onion and 2 chopped garlic cloves, and saute until tender. Add tomatoes and their puree, squeezing them into coarse chunks. Add parsley, oregano, cinnamon and vinegar. Stir well. Simmer, uncovered, for 25 minutes. Reserve.
• In a large saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat. Add remaining onions and garlic. Saute for 5 minutes. Add lamb, in stages if necessary, and brown well, breaking up pieces with a wooden spoon. Add wine and bring to a boil. Cook until wine has nearly evaporated. 5. Season lamb with salt, black pepper and 2 pinches of nutmeg. Stir in 1 cup of reserved tomato sauce. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour.
• In a large saucepan, melt 4 tablespoons of butter over medium-low heat, and gradually whisk in flour. Cook for 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Do not let this brown. Add hot milk and whisk rapidly to combine. Bring to a slow boil, whisking constantly. Reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes, stirring frequently, until smooth and thickened. Season with salt, white pepper and remaining 2 pinches nutmeg. Let cool slightly.
• In a mixing bowl, beat eggs and whisk in a spoonful of bechamel. Whisk in remaining bechamel in a thin stream, and adjust seasoning.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Assemble moussaka: Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of bread crumbs across the bottom of a large baking dish (18-by-8-by-3 inches) and cover crumbs evenly with half the eggplant slices. Drain as much oil from lamb mixture as possible, and spread the meat over the eggplant layer. Top meat with half the cheese, then with half the remaining bread crumbs. Place remaining eggplant slices on top of the bread crumbs, then add the bechamel, remaining cheese and remaining bread crumbs in even layers. Dot with remaining butter.
• Bake for 45 minutes, until well browned. Remove from oven and let cool slightly, about 15 minutes. Cut into 3-inch squares to serve. Serve with the extra tomato sauce.

SHORTCUT MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat.
• Add ground beef and chopped onion and cook until beef is brown, breaking up beef with fork, about 15 minutes.
• Mix in tomato sauce, red wine, parsley, crumbled oregano and ground cinnamon. Simmer until mixture thickens and is almost dry, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover tightly and refrigerate.).
• Preheat oven to 350°F
• Melt butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add flour and stir 1 minute.
• Gradually add milk, whisking until smooth. Boil until thick, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes.
• Beat eggs in small bowl to blend. Whisk small amount of milk mixture into eggs. Return mixture to saucepan.
• Bring to boil, whisking constantly. Remove custard from heat.
• Stir in 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese. Season custard to taste with salt and pepper.
• Butter 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Arrange half of eggplant in bottom of dish. Season with salt and pepper.
• Spread meat mixture over. Top with remaining eggplant.
• Pour hot custard cheese sauce over eggplant. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan.
• Cover loosely with foil and bake 1 hour. Uncover and continue baking until golden and bubbling on edges, about 10 minutes longer. Cool 10 minutes.