Pastitsio (Greek Lasagna)

For my regional dish this week I'm leaving North America and heading to Greece.  This dish is courtesy of Saveur magazine.  The August/September 2010 issue was "The Greece Issue" and full of wonderful, delicious Greek food.  I saw quite a few recipes I'm looking forward to making in the near future, but this one caught my eye as one I had to make NOW!  And with good reason.  This is a fantastic casserole.  It's similar to moussaka but instead of eggplant and potato there's pasta at the bottom, held together with egg whites and cheese, then a layer of meat sauce, and then topped with a bechamel sauce.  Fabulous!!!  It makes a big 9 x 13 pan too so we were lucky enough to have leftovers.

The next time I make this I would make just a couple of changes though.  More spices.  The meat sauce was a bit bland.  I'd up the cinnamon and nutmeg and even grate some fresh nutmeg over the top.  I'd also substitute ground lamb for the ground beef which I ALMOST did when making this but decided to go with the ground beef.  I think I'd prefer lamb.  And last but not least I'd skip the chorizo in the meat sauce.  I have no idea why it's in there in the first place.  You can't taste it and I don't think it adds anything to the dish.  Chorizo isn't exactly Greek and it's not found in traditional pastitsios.  As much as I love chorizo, I'll leave it out next time.

Other than that....perfect.  The bechamel sauce was one of the best I've ever had/made.  The whole dish was amazing and while not difficult, it was a bit time consuming so beware.  In my opinion, not exactly a dish you'd rush home from work to make.  You need a bit of time for the different steps.

I have high hopes for the other recipes I bookmarked in this magazine if they're anything like this one.

Enjoy!

Pastitsio
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Meat Sauce

1⁄3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 green bell peppers, cored, seeded,
and minced
2 medium yellow onions, minced
1 lb. ground beef, veal, or pork
3 oz. dry-cured chorizo, minced
2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
1⁄3 cup red wine
1⁄4 tsp. crushed red chile flakes
2 fresh or dried bay leaves
1 2" cinnamon stick
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper,
to taste
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste

Bechamel and Pasta

8 T unsalted butter
1 cup flour
4 cups milk
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 eggs, separated
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper,
to taste
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
1lb. No. 2 Greek macaroni, bucatini,
or elbow macaroni (I used whole-wheat elbow macaroni)
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

Make the meat sauce: Heat oil in a 12" skillet over medium-high heat. Add peppers and onions and cook, stirring often, until soft, 8–10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer onion mixture to a plate and set aside. Add ground meat and chorizo to skillet and cook, breaking meat up into tiny pieces, until browned, 6–8 minutes. Add reserved onion mixture, along with tomatoes, wine, chile flakes, bay leaves, and cinnamon and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring often, until sauce thickens, about 15 minutes. Remove sauce from heat, discard bay leaves and cinnamon, and season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg; let cool.

Make the béchamel: Heat butter in a 4-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook, whisking constantly, until smooth and slightly toasted, 1–2 minutes. Add milk; cook, whisking often, until sauce coats the back of a spoon, 8–10 minutes. Remove from heat, add 3⁄4 cup cheese and egg yolks; season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir until smooth; set aside.

Heat oven to 350°. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; add pasta and cook halfway through, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk egg whites in a large bowl until frothy. Stir in remaining cheese; drain pasta in a colander and then toss with egg white–cheese mixture to coat evenly. Set aside.

Grease a deep 9" x 13" baking dish with olive oil. Place half the pasta mixture on bottom of dish and cover evenly with meat sauce. Top with remaining pasta mixture. Pour béchamel over pasta, spreading it evenly with a rubber spatula. Bake until the top is golden brown, about 1 hour. Transfer to wire rack; cool 20 minutes before serving.

Serves 10 – 12

Source:  Saveur - August/September 2010