Mostaccioli by Michelle
6 oz uncooked Mostaccioli (I use 1 box of penne noodles)
1 lb ground lean beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 tsp. chopped fresh, or 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
(1) 8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 clove garlic, crushed (I use the garlic already minced from the store)
Sauce:
1 Tbsp Margarine or Butter
2 Tbsp Flour
1- 1/2 C. low fat milk
1/4 grated Romano Cheese (I use an Italian mix or Parmesan)
Preheat oven to 350.
Cook noodles as directed on pkg & drain. Cook beef & onion in lg skillet, stirring frequently until beef is brown. Stir in oregano, salt, cinnamon, 1/2 of the nutmeg, tomato sauce and garlic.
Add to noodles & mix well.
Heat margarine or butter in a sauce pan over low to med heat until melted.
Stir in flour; cook over low heat until thick and bubbly. Remove from heat and stir in milk, little by little, stirring well so as to avoid lumps. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly, boil and stir one min. Pour over rest of mixture. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake uncovered for 30-40.
Pastitsio - Greek Casserole by Jill C.
Noodle Mixture
1 lb uncooked tubular pasta
1 egg white
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons milk
Meat Mixture
oil
2 onions, diced
1 1/2 cups cubed peeled eggplant
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 lbs ground beef, pork, lamb or combination (I used brisket)
1/2 cup red wine
1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes in puree
1/3 cup kalamata olives, chopped
1 tsp Greek oregano
1 cinnamon stick
salt and pepper
Sauce
6 tbsp butter
1/3 cup flour
4 cups milk
pinch nutmeg
salt and pepper
3 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1. Prepare meat sauce first. Heat oil in a large skillet and add onion. Cook until softened and add garlic.
2. Add meat and cook until browned, breaking up chunks with a wooden spoon. Add remaining meat sauce ingredients, mix and simmer one hour, covered.
3. While meat sauce is cooking, bring a large pot of water to boil then salt generously and add pasta.
4. Cook pasta to al dente, drain and return to the cooled pot. With the heat off, stir in butter, milk, eggs and cheese. Set aside.
5. Prepare bechamel sauce by melting butter over medium high heat in a large sauce pan or medium pot. Whisk in flour and cook for several minutes, whisking smooth, do not allow the roux to scorch.
6. Slowly add milk, whisking constantly until thickened. If your milk is cool and sauce seems thin, bring to a boil stirring constantly then remove from heat once thick. Add salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
7. Beat 3 eggs in a medium bowl for bechamel sauce: slowly add sauce to beaten eggs, being careful to keep from curdling the eggs. I usually start by tempering the eggs, that is I dip my whisk in the hot sauce then whisk those drops into the eggs, then continue doing this a few times before attempting to slowly dribble about a 1/4 cup of sauce into the bowl. Once you’ve gotten about that much successfully incorporated, you can go ahead and slowly add the rest.
8. Remove the cinnamon stick from the meat, allow sauce to cool slightly and prepare casserole dishes.
9. Grease a large lasagna pan or two medium casserole dishes with oil then construct pastitsio by layering: pasta mixture, meat sauce, more pasta mixture. Finish by covering with bechamel and sprinkling grated Parmesan over the top.
10. Bake casserole at 350°F for approximately 45 min to 1 hour until bechamel is set and golden. This recipes makes enough to bake two casseroles and remove one at about 30 minutes. Allow it to cool then cover in plastic wrap then foil and place in the freezer for another dinner.
11. Once casserole is nicely browned on top, remove from oven and allow to rest 20 minutes.
12. Cut pastitsio into squares and serve.
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