Deconstructed Eggplant Moussaka Recipes

DECONSTRUCTED MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 425F / 218C.
• Brush a sheet pan with some cooking oil. Spread eggplant and potatoes out in a single layer. Cover pan tightly with foil.
• Roast in the oven for 10 minutes to get the vegetables started cooking. (Watch this video for tips on roasting at high heat.)
• Once vegetables are in the oven, make bechamel sauce.
• Heat milk in the microwave just until warm to the touch (be careful not to overheat it).
• Melt butter in an oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Add flour and cook, whisking constantly, until smooth and creamy, ~2 minutes.
• While still whisking, slowly pour milk over butter / flour mixture. Keep whisking until everything is evenly combined. Add bay leaf and nutmeg and simmer bechamel until thick and creamy, 2 to 4 minutes.
• Transfer bechamel to a small bowl and wipe out skillet (you'll use it for cooking the meat).
• Remove roasting vegetables from the oven.
• Reduce oven to 400F / 204C.
• Remove foil from vegetables and toss vegetables with first portion of oil. Season with some salt and pepper. Return to oven and continue roasting, stirring halfway through cooking, until golden brown and tender, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Return to skillet. Heat skillet with second part of cooking oil over medium-high heat. Add onions and saute until soft, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add lamb and saute, breaking it apart, until cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes. Drain off as much excess liquid / grease as possible.
• Add garlic to lamb. Saute for 2 minutes more.
• Stir in wine and tomato paste. Bring to a simmer. Simmer for 2 minutes.
• Whisk egg yolks into bechamel sauce. Discard bay leaves. Pour sauce over lamb. Sprinkle cheese on top. Transfer skillet to oven and bake until golden brown and bubbly, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Serve lamb over roasted vegetables. If you still have green onions from earlier in the week, you can chop some and put them on top for a pop of color. Enjoy!

EGGPLANT MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.
• Trim off the ends of the eggplant. Cut the eggplant into 12 slices of equal width. Set aside.
• Heat the 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet, and add the onions and garlic. Cook, stirring, until onions are wilted. Add the meat and cook, chopping down with the edge of a heavy metal kitchen spoon to break up any lumps. Add salt, pepper and cinnamon. Cook, stirring, until the meat loses its raw look.
• Add the wine, broth and 1 cup of the crushed tomatoes and stir. Bring to a boil and cover. Simmer for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan, and add the flour, stirring with a wire whisk. Add the milk while stirring rapidly with the whisk. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the remaining 1/4 cup crushed tomatoes.
• Bring to a simmer, and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the egg yolk, and remove from the heat.
• Sprinkle the eggplant slices with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of the corn oil in a large nonstick skillet, and add enough eggplant slices to cover the bottom. Cook about 45 seconds on one side; turn the slices and continue cooking for about 45 seconds. Remove the slices and drain.
• Continue cooking the remaining eggplant in the same manner, adding a little more oil as necessary for each batch.
• Arrange about a third of the eggplant slices in one layer on the bottom of a 2 1/2-quart baking dish. Spoon a third of the meat sauce over the eggplant slices. Continue making the layers in the same manner, ending with a layer of meat sauce. Spoon the white sauce over all.
• Sprinkle the cheese over all, and place the dish in the oven. Bake 15 minutes. If desired, run the dish briefly under the broiler until the cheese is lightly browned.

SHORTCUT MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• In a colander, toss the eggplant and 1 teaspoon salt. Drain in the sink for 15 minutes.
• Heat oven to 450 degrees Toss the eggplant with the oil and spread on a large baking sheet. Roast, turning occasionally, until golden and tender, about 40 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees.
• Bring 6 cups water, the potatoes and 1 tablespoon salt to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Lower heat and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes; drain and return potatoes to the warm pot. In a small bowl, whisk together milk and egg yolk. Mash potatoes with milk-egg mixture, 1/2 cup cheese, butter, 1/4 teaspoon salt and nutmeg. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed.
• In a very large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the lamb, breaking it up with a fork as it cooks. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Push the meat to one side of the skillet and spoon off all but a thin layer of fat from the skillet. Add the onions and cinnamon sticks to the skillet. Cook until the onions are soft, about 5 minutes. Stir the lamb back into the onions and add the garlic and ground clove. Cook 2 minutes more. Stir in the tomatoes, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper. Cook until tomatoes are soft and the mixture is thick, about 10 minutes. Stir in the eggplant.
• Spoon into a 9-inch baking dish. Spread the mashed potatoes over the lamb. Sprinkle with bread crumbs and the remaining 1/4 cup cheese. Bake until top is golden brown and slightly crusty, about 30 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before serving.