Vegetarian Moussaka Classic Greek Casserole Food

VEGETARIAN MOUSSAKA - CLASSIC GREEK CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Slice up your eggplant, then sprinkle it with a salt and leave it for 30 minutes. Pat it dry. Next brush with olive oil on both sides, place on baking sheet, season with pepper and roast on 400F for 12-15 minutes, until soft; Remove from the oven and let them cool;
• Slice up your zucchini, and season with salt and pepper. Brush with oil on both sides, and place on baking sheet and bake with eggplants for about 12-15 minutes; Remove from the oven and let them cool;
• Peel and slice potatoes and cook them in a slightly salted boiling water until fork tender for about 10 minutes; place them in a colander to discard the water and let them cool;
• To prepare your spinach/feta layer, start off by chopping some onions and garlic;
• In a skillet, heat up the olive oil, add onions and cook for 2-3 minutes, until translucent;
• Add garlic and cook for an additional minute;
• Add spinach and let it cook down until totally wilted;
• Then add fresh dill, salt, and pepper and set aside to cool off. This would be the time to adjust seasoning, but be careful with the salt as feta will add some saltiness to this mix.
• In a bowl beat 2 eggs, add feta, salt, and pepper;
• Once the spinach mixture is cooled, add it to the bowl, mix everything together and set it aside.
• To make a tomato sauce you'll start off the same way as above with spinach/feta layer:
• Heat up some olive oil, add onions and cook until translucent;
• Add garlic and cook for one more minute;
• Then add spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, & oregano;
• Add pureed tomatoes, sugar, salt and pepper. Then cover and cook for approximately 20 minutes;
• Adjust seasoning (salt and pepper) as needed.
• In a skillet, melt butter; then add flour and whisk vigorously;
• Gradually start adding milk and mixing it in, until the sauce is smooth;
• Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg;
• Turn off the heat;
• Add Parmesan cheese and mix well;
• This would be the time to check for seasoning and adjust accordingly;
• Beat 2 eggs and 1 egg yolk and add them to the béchamel sauce, mixing thoroughly.
• Preheat the oven to 350F;
• Using a 9X13" casserole dish, brush it with olive oil or spray with cooking spray;
• Add slices of eggplant and top them with slices of zucchinis;
• Then add tomato sauce;
• Add another layer of eggplant;
• Add a layer of spinach/feta mix;
• Add sliced potatoes;
• Top it all of with your béchamel sauce;
• Sprinkle it with some more Parmesan Cheese;
• Bake it in the oven for 50-55, minutes until golden brown and bubbly;
• Let it cool off for about 20 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

CLASSIC GREEK MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• Prepare the meat sauce:.
• Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add ground beef and brown for about 10 to 12 minutes.
• Chop onions and garlic.
• Add to meat. Continue browning for another 10 minutes.
• Add the spices and tomato paste. Mix well.
• Cook and stir for 5 to 6 minutes. Add wine and simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
• Turn off heat. Mix in lemon juice. Set sauce aside.
• Peel eggplants. Slice off top and bottom. Slice into 1/4″ rounds. Line a broiler pan with foil. Brush with olive oil Broil eggplant slices 3 to 4 minutes. Turn and broil 2 to 3 minutes longer until browned. Remove from pan and set aside. You will be doing this in 3 to 4 batches.
• Wash potatoes. No need to peel if using yellow or red potatoes. Cut into 1/4″ slices. Boil in salted water for 5 to 8 minutes; you don't want them soft, just semi done. Drain and set aside.
• Prepare the béchamel sauce:.
• Heat butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. When melted, whisk in flour. Blend well.
• Slowly pour in milk, whisking constantly.
• Add salt and nutmeg. Place egg yolks in a small bowl. Stir with fork. Drizzle in one to two tablespoons of the white sauce. Stir into egg yolks. Pour yolk mixture into béchamel sauce. Whisk constantly until thickened and bubbly. Set aside.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Layer a 9″ x 13″ casserole with sliced potatoes, overlapping slightly. Top with half of the eggplant slices.
• Cover with meat sauce.
• Top meat sauce with remaining eggplant slices.
• Sprinkle with 1/2 cup grated cheese.
• Spoon white sauce evenly over everything. Top with remaining 1/2 cup cheese and fresh basil, torn.
• Bake at 350 degrees 30 to 45 minutes or until nicely browned. Let cool 10 to 15 minutes.
• Serves 8.

MOUSSAKA - GREEK CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Potatoes:.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Toss the potatoes with the olive oil in a large bowl.
• Put them in a single layer on a baking sheet and season to taste.
• Roast until soft and starting to brown, about 35 minutes.
• Béchamel Sauce:.
• In a medium saucepan melt the butter over medium heat.
• Add flour and cook, stirring, about 2 minutes until it starts bubbling but does not color.
• Gradually whisk in the hot milk.
• Continue whisking for about 6 to 8 minutes until it thickens.
• Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
• Put the eggs in a large bowl.
• Whisk the béchamel sauce into the eggs.
• Continue whisking for a few minutes until the béchamel has cooled slightly (enough so that the eggs won't curdle).
• Cover bowl with plastic wrap.
• Make sure to place wrap directly on the surface of the sauce so a skin does not form.
• Set aside.
• Lamb:.
• Heat oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat.
• Add lamb and sauté until cooked through, breaking up with back of spoon, about 6 minutes.
• Add onion and garlic and sauté until tender, about 6 minutes.
• Add wine, cayenne pepper, and oregano and cook 2 minutes.
• Stir in cinnamon, tomatoes, tomato paste and nutmeg.
• Reduce heat to medium.
• Cover and simmer until sauce is very thick and reduced to about 6 cups, stirring occasionally, about 60-70 minutes.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper. Meanwhile, preheat the grill on medium-high heat.
• Brush the eggplant slices with oil and season with salt and pepper.
• Grill until cooked through and golden, about 2 minutes per side.
• Set aside.
• To Assemble:.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Coat a 14x10x2-inch glass baking dish with oil.
• Arrange potatoes in bottom of dish.
• Arrange half of eggplant slices over potatoes.
• Pour half of lamb sauce over.
• Arrange another layer of eggplant slices on top.
• Pour remaining sauce over.
• Pour béchamel sauce over moussaka, covering completely.
• Bake moussaka uncovered until bubbling around edges, about 1 hour or until topping is softly set and browned.
• Transfer baking dish to rack and let rest 20 minutes before slicing.

VEGETARIAN MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• Boil spinach for one minute, drain and reserve the liquid.
• Put 450 ml of the water into a pan and add the lentils.
• Cover and cook over a medium-low heat for 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat 1 tbs of oil in a large frying pan and cook the onion and garlic for about 10 minutes until soft and golden.
• Stir the mushrooms into the onions, increase the heat and season generously.
• Cook until juicy and darkened in colour.
• Add the tomatoes to the pan and cook briskly for 5 minutes until thickened but still quite liquid.
• Add the lentils and any cooking liquid, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon cumin.
• Simmer gently for a few minutes.
• Squeeze all the liquid out of the spinach and stir it into the pan.
• Add a little water if the stew seems too dry.
• Boil the potatoes in salted water, drain, cool slightly and slice lengthways.
• Pre-heat the oven to 400 F or 200 degrees C.
• Trim the eggplant and slice lengthways about 1/2 cm thick.
• Smear a baking sheet with remaining oil, lay out the slices.
• Bake for 15 minutes, turn and cook the other side for a further 5 minutes until soft.
• Reduce the temperature to 360 F or 180 degrees C.
• Take a 2-litre capacity dish at least 5 cm deep and make a layer with half the potatoes, then half the eggplant, followed by the mushroom mixture, the rest of the eggplant and the rest of the potatoes.
• To make the topping, melt the butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour and gradually add the milk and bring it to the boil.
• Simmer for a few minutes, add the parmesan and the ricotta mixed with the egg.
• Remove from the heat, taste and adjust the seasoning.
• Pour the sauce over the moussaka and dust with nutmeg.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is set and golden.

REALLY EASY GREEK MOUSSAKA CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Peel and slice eggplant, and slice into pieces 1/2 inch thick; sprinkle with sea salt and allow to sit and drain in a colander. Rinse eggplant with water; pat dry and mince.
• Cook lamb and onion in olive oil in a large nonstick skillet until meat is browned. Add potato, garlic, salt, pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg, cooking until potato is browned. Add tomatoes, tomato paste and vinegar along with water and cook until potato is done, then place in a large casserole dish or lasagna pan.
• Add more oil to nonstick skillet, and cook eggplant in two batches, until browned and tender, adding 1/2 cup dry red wine at the end of each cooking cycle and allowing the wine to cook in and absorb.
• Mix together cooked eggplant with sauce in pan, and spread evenly.
• Add butter to skillet along with flour and whisk into a roux; add milks and seasonings, and cook, stirring, until thickened. astir in cheese and remove from heat.
• Add 1/2 cup bechamel sauce to the eggs, whisking quickly to temper them and keep them from scrambling in the bechamel sauce, then add egg/sauce mixture to the bechamel sauce and finish whisking.
• Spread bechamel sauce over meat sauce.
• Bake moussaka uncovered for 35-40 minutes at 350°F or until bechamel sauce is set.
• Allow casserole to rest about 15 minutes before serving (I serve the salad course while waiting).