Houston Style Greek Moussaka

Total Time: 1 hr 15 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 4 russet potatoes
• 1 lb minced meat, lamb or 1 lb beef
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 16 ounces tinned tomatoes or 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 cup grated cheese, cheddar, parmesan or 1 cup kefalotiri
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon parsley, finely chopped
• oil (for frying)
• salt, pepper
• 8 tablespoons dried breadcrumbs
• bechamel sauce
• 1/4 cup butter
• 4 tablespoons plain flour
• 5 cups milk (warmed, but not boiling)
• 2 egg yolks
• salt, pepper
• 1/2 cup grated cheese, cheddar, parmesan or 1/2 cup kefalotiri

Recipe

• 1 peel the potatoes, wash well and slice into 1/4 inch round slices.
• 2 fry the potatoes both sides.
• 3 remove from pan and place on absorbent paper to soak up any excess oil.
• 4 melt the butter in a saucepan and saute the chopped onion, fry the ground meat (lamb or beef) until browned.
• 5 add the finely chopped tomatoes (or paste), salt, pepper and parsley.
• 6 cover and simmer until most of the juices are dried up.
• 7 remove from the heat and add 1/3 of the cheese and 3-4 tablespoons of the french toast or breadcrumbs.
• 8 in a greased baking tray, sprinkle about 2 tablespoons of the french toast on the bottom of the tray.
• 9 place half the potatoes in a layer on the bottom of the baking tray.
• 10 sprinkle 1/3 of the grated cheese over the potatoes.
• 11 pour all the mince meat sauce over the potatoes and spread evenly.
• 12 finish with the rest of the potatoes in a layer over the meat sauce.
• 13 to make the bechamel sauce.
• 14 melt the butter in a saucepan.
• 15 stir in the flour and mix over a gentle heat until it turns slightly yellow and starts to bubble.
• 16 remove from the heat and slowly add a little milk and mix in well.
• 17 gradually add the rest of the milk, stir over a gentle heat until the sauce boils and thickens.
• 18 (you may need a hand whisk to use whilst the sauce is slowly thickening, to prevent the sauce going lumpy.).
• 19 if you get lots of lumps in the sauce, don't worry. remove the saucepan from the heat. use an electric mixer to beat the sauce for a couple of minutes and you will get rid of all the lumps. season with salt and pepper.
• 20 stir in the cheese.
• 21 leave it to cool for a few minutes, then stir the egg yolks through the sauce until completely mixed inches.
• 22 pour the bechamel sauce evenly over the potatoes.
• 23 sprinkle the remaining cheese over the sauce and then about 2 tablespoons of the ground french toast or breadcrumbs on top.
• 24 bake in a medium oven (350) for approximately 30-40 minutes, or until it reaches a nice golden colour.
• 25 remove from the oven and leave it to stand for 5-10 minutes to set before cutting into portions.
• 26 serve with fresh crusty bread and a crisp green salad.