Moussaka?

In article <[email hidden]>,

The Ranger said:

I'd like to make this dish but when I went hunting through my
recipe books, didn't find one recipe. Anyone have a favorite that
they wouldn't mind sharing? (I'm partial to Greek with eggplant
but have also had a Croatian recipe based on potatoes.)

The Ranger

George Shirley posted this to rec.food.preserving a couple years ago:

This recipe is taken from the book "A Bunch of Greek Dishes" by
Alexandra Triantafyllidis and the book has no copyright, Greek or
American.

Aubergine Pie (Moussaka Melitzanes)

Ingredients:
1.5 kilos (3 lbs) aubergines (eggplant) (I use the Japanese type. gms)
1/2 kilo (1 lb) minced meat (hamburger works fine)
2 medium size onions
1/2 kilo (1 lb) fresh tomatoes or a tablespoon of tomato puree diluted
in a cup of cold water.
1 teaspoon sugar.
1/2 cup dry white wine.
1 stick cinnamon.
Olive oil for frying.
4 eggs. 1/2 cup milk - Parsley.
1 tablespoon butter (for minced meat).
1 cup grated cheese (Parmesan or other).
1 tablespoon breadcrumbs.

Bechamel Sauce:
4 heaped tablespoons butter.
5 heaped tablespoons flour - 2 cups milk - nutmeg - salt - pepper
Slice thickly the aubergines.
Sprinkle with salt. (Not necessary with the sweet Japanese type
eggplant)
Leave on platter for 1-2 hours.
Rinse in cold water and squeeze a little. Wipe dry.
Heat some oil and fry aubergines with lid on pan until soft on both
sides.
Drain on thick paper. (I use a layer of paper towel atop a triple
thickness of newspaper - works well)
Boil minced meat, onions, butter in a cup of water.
When water is absorbed let meat and onion brown with the butter which is
in the pan.
add parsley and cinnamon, salt and pepper to taste.
pur over the wine and cover with lid, let the wine be absorbed.
Add tomato juice and sugar.
Simmer until thick.
Discard stick of cinnamon.
If mixture is too greasy add 1-2 tablespoons breadcrumbs.
Grease large baking tin or pyrex dish.
Put in a layer of aubergines.
Sprinkle aubergines with grated cheese.
Spread half the meat mixture.
Sprinkle with grated cheese.
Spread another layer of aubergines and sprinkle with grated cheese.
Spread the remaining minced meat and sprinkle with grated cheese.
Cover with a third layer of aubergines.
Beat two egg youlks and four whites with 1/2 cup milk. Pour over the
pie.

Make bechamel sauce:
Heat butter and work in flour until smooth. Add, little by little,
nutmeg, salt, stirring all the while. Cook until fairly thick. Beat
remaining two egg yolks into the bechamel. Add a handful of cheese. Pour
over pie.
Sprinkle generously with remaining cheese and breadcrumbs and a few dots
of butter. Bake for 45 minutes in a moderate (350F) oven until golden
brown. Let cool a little and cut into squares before serving. If desired
put only two layers of aubergine and all minced meat in between.

Note: For freezing I omit the beaten egg yolks and whites and the
bechamel sauce and make the moussaka in a throwaway aluminum pan. Put
the pan in a vacuum bag and seal the bag, mark with date, and freeze. We
have eaten them when they were two years old and they are as good as
new. You add the beaten eggs and the bechamel sauce after the pie has
thawed and prior to baking. I have also successfully cut the recipe in
half and put the results into smaller aluminum pans as there are only
two of us to eat the pie. Good luck.
George
--
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com, updated 2-4-2006, Masa

The Ranger said:

I'd like to make this dish but when I went hunting through my
recipe books, didn't find one recipe. Anyone have a favorite that
they wouldn't mind sharing? (I'm partial to Greek with eggplant
but have also had a Croatian recipe based on potatoes.)

When I asked that question on this group some time ago, I was given this
answer: http://www.astray.com/recipes/?show=Shortcut%20moussaka I've
made it only once and was pleased with the results. It tastes great,
but it's a real production to make. It uses every pot and pan in the
house. I normally do simpler cooking. I'm glad I made it because once
I understood the basics of how it goes together, I was able to
improvise. I stuck with the general idea but used more vegetables and
different vegetables. (Eggplant is on my edible list, but there are
others I prefer.)

--Lia

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

George Shirley posted this to rec.food.preserving a couple years ago:

This recipe is taken from the book "A Bunch of Greek Dishes" by
Alexandra Triantafyllidis and the book has no copyright, Greek or
American.

Aubergine Pie (Moussaka Melitzanes)

[snip]

Couple of variations:
instead of frying the eggplant you can also grill it in the oven - it absorbs
less fat that way.
I always put a layer of mashed potatoes into the bottom of the dish before I
start piling in the aubergines and the mince.

-Peter

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