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This dish is traditional Greek Comfort food. It’s got such a unique taste, that you’ll soon be looking for more of it. The dish is great when served hot or cold, and the flavours improve if left in a refrigerator overnight, and then heated up the next day to have hot.

A traditional Greek Moussaka tends to use Pork mince, but Beef is more than fine – you can also make this a vegetarian dish by using more Aubergines instead of the Minced Meat.

To Serve 4
600g Aubergine, Sliced into 1cm Thick Rounds
1tbsp Olive Oil
1 Onion, Chopped Roughly
2 Garlic Cloves, Chopped Finely
400g Minced Beef
1tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
400g Can Chopped Tomatoes
1 ½ tsp Ground Cinnamon (or 2 Cinnamon Sticks)
Small Bunch Parsley, Chopped
1tbsp Clear Honey
470g Jar of White Sauce
100g Cheese
Sea Salt and Pepper

1. Sprinkle the Aubergines with a little Sea Salt, and allow to stand for fifteen minutes, before rinsing and drying off with kitchen paper. Heat a grill up, and grill on each side for two minutes until they are lightly browned and dry.
2. Heat the Oil up in a large pan, and cook the Onion and Garlic until soft and brown – around four minutes. Add the meat (if using it), and cook brown it off for about five minutes.
3. Add the Worcestershire Sauce, Chopped Tomatoes, Cinnamon, Parsley and Honey to the pan, and simmer for fifteen minutes uncovered, before removing the Cinnamon Stick (if you aren’t using Ground Cinnamon). Pre-heat the Oven to 170C
4. In a large Ovenproof dish, layer the Aubergines with the Meat Sauce, then pour the White Sauce over the top and scatter the Cheese over the top. Bake for thirty minutes until the top is golden and bubbling.

Photo Courtesy of: zrzka2010

This traditional Greek dish is full of flavour, and very simple to make. If you want it to be even simpler, you can use White Sauce instead of creating your own sauce.

To Serve 4
200g Pastichio Noodles
1lb Minced Beef or Minced Pork
1 medium Onion
½ Stick of Butter
1/3 Cup of Flour
1 Tube of Tomato Puree
3 cups of Milk
3 Eggs
1 Cup Grated Cheese
1 tbsp Cinnamon
Salt And Pepper

1. Brown the Meat off in a pan, and finely chop the Onion, adding to the pan and cook off until the fat evaporates.

2. Add the Tomato Paste along with a cup of water. Add the Salt, Pepper and Cinnamon to the pan, cover and simmer on a low heat for fifteen minutes. Boil the Noodles and set them aside.

3. In a separate pan, melt the butter and slowly add in the flour until it makes a thick mixture. Add the Milk until it boils – it should take around five minutes, stirring all the time.

4. Beat the Eggs in a bowl, and slowly add the Butter, Flour and Milk into the Eggs, stirring all the time to prevent any lumps forming. Return to the saucepan, and stir constantly over a medium heat for one or two minutes. Add the Grated Cheese and stir in.

5. Spread half of the Noodles over the bottom of a casserole dish, and cover with half of the sauce. Cover with the Meat, and then cover with some more of the sauce. Lay the rest of the noodles over the top, and cover with the remainder of the sauce.

6. Bake at 180C for forty to forty five minutes.

Serve this dish either on its own, or serve with seasonal vegetables.

Photo Courtesy of: pink_fish13