Moussaka
Ingredients:
1kg eggplant,
1kg potatoes,
Oil for frying
˝ cup butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 kg coarse minced lamb, or very finely chopped lamb
˝ cup red or white wine
2 teaspoons salt
Ground black pepper
Finely chopped parsley
6 large tomatoes, thickly sliced.
Bechamel sauce, made with
3 cups milk
9 tablespoons butter
9 tablespoons flour
3 eggs lightly beaten
Salt and white pepper
Method:
Top and tail eggplant, then cut into 1cm/ 1/3in slices.
Sprinkle liberally with salt and place in a sieve over a bowl.
Leave for at least 30 minutes, to allow juices to drain.
Peel and cut the potatoes into 1cm/1/3in slices and place in a bowl of cold water, ready to use later.
Heat some of the butter and fry the onion for a few minutes until soft, add the mince and cook until the mince has browned all over.
Add the salt and pepper and the wine and simmer for about 10 minutes.
Remove from heat.
Drain the potatoes and dry.
Salt the potatoes ( about 2 teaspooons) and fry lightly in some more of the butter.
Remove and from pan and set aside.
Rinse the eggplant and dry.
Add some oil into the pan where you fried the potatoes, heat and then fry the eggplant slices.
Drain on kitchen paper.
Make up the béchamel sauce:
Melt the butter and add the flour and cook gently for a few minutes.
Add the milk and stir constantly, using a whisk until the sauce thickens.
Boil for another 2 minutes.
Remove from the heat and allow the sauce to cool slightly before beating in the eggs, a little at a time.
Season with salt and white pepper to taste.
Place the lamb mince on the base of an ovenproof dish.
Sprinkle with the chopped parsely and place a layer of the sliced tomatoes on top.
Sprinkle with some salt.
Layer the drained eggplant on top of the tomatoes and the potatoes on top of the eggplant.
Pour over the béchamel sauce.
Cook in a moderate oven for about 45 minutes, until the béchamel goes brown.
