Greek Ziti From Food And Wine Recipes

GREEK BAKED ZITI

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta in a dutch oven according to package instructions.
• 2. Meanwhile, saute onion in hot oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat 4-5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic; saute 30 seconds. Add beef; cook, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes or until crumbled and no longer pink. Drain mixture, and return to skillet.
• 3. Stir tomato sauce, next 4 ingredients, and 1 tsp. salt into meat mixture. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, and cook, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
• 4. Melt butter in a large saucepan over low heat. Whisk in flour and cook, whisking constantly, 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk. Increase heat to medium, and cook, stirring constantly, 5-7 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Stir in parmesan cheese, pepper and remaining 1/2 tsp salt. Add sauce to pasta, stirring to coat.
• 5. Transfer pasta mixture to a lightly greased (with cooking spray) 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Top with beef mixture, mozzarella cheese and bread crumbs.
• 6. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until mixture is bubbly and cheese is melted. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

GREEK TZATZIKI

Steps:

• Stir together yogurt, grated cucumber, garlic, lemon juice, and olive oil in a bowl. Add lemon zest, dill, salt, and pepper; whisk until smooth. Pour into a serving dish, cover tightly, and refrigerate 8 hours before serving.

GREEK PASTITSIO RECIPE (GREEK LASAGNA WITH BéCHAMEL)

Steps:

• To prepare this traditional pastitsio recipe (pastichio), start with the meat sauce. Place a large pan over medium-high heat and add the olive oil, the chopped onions and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato paste and the beef. Break up the meat with a wooden spoon and brown for 4-5 minutes. Pour in the red wine and wait to evaporate. Add the canned tomatoes, the sugar, cinnamon, clove, the bay leaf and season. Bring to the boil, turn the heat down and simmer with the lid on for about 30 minutes, until most of the juices have evaporated. (After the meat is cooked, discard the bay leaf, the clove and the cinnamon)
• Prepare the bechamel sauce for the pastitsio. Melt the butter in a large pan over low-medium heat. Add the flour whisking continuously to make a paste. Add warmed milk in small batches, whisking continuously in order to prevent your sauce from getting lumpy. If the sauce still needs to thicken, boil over low heat whilst continuing to stir. Remove the pan from the stove and add the egg yolks, salt, pepper, a pinch of nutmeg and the grated cheese (50g/ 1.7oz.). Whisk quickly, in order to prevent the eggs from turning an omelette! Season with salt to taste.
• Cook the pasta for the pastitsio 2-3 minutes less than the package instructions, so that they don't get mushy after turning out of the oven later. Drain the pasta and stir in the egg whites and the feta cheese (smashed with a fork) and mix gently with a spatula.
• For this pastitsio recipe you will need a large baking dish, approx. 25*35 cm / 10*14 inch. Butter the bottom and sides of a pan and assemble the pastitsio. Layer the pasta, top with the meat sauce and even out. Top the pastitsio with the bechamel sauce and smooth out with a spatula.
• Sprinkle the pastichio with grated cheese and bake in preheated oven at 180C (350F) Fan for about 40 minutes, until crust turns a light golden brown. Let the pastitsio cool down for a while before serving.

GREEK ZITI

Steps:

• Simmer broth, oregano, basil, and sage for about 4 minutes, or until only 1/2 cup of liquid remains, in a large pan with a lid.
• Add chicken and let it steam in the hot broth for about 8 minutes by covering the pan with the lid and removing from heat.
• Prepare ziti according to package directions.
• Drain pasta and add to chicken mixture.
• Toss pasta and chicken with the feta, lemon juice, pepper, and parsley.
• Continue mixing until cheese is melted and top with the cherry tomatoes.

PASTITSIO - GREEK BAKED ZITI/LASAGNA

Steps:

• Add the olive oil to a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the ground beer and lamb and cook for 5-6 minutes, or just until you do not see any more pink.
• Add the onion and garlic and continue to cook until the onions are soft and the garlic is very fragrant, about 4-5 minutes. Salt and pepper generously.
• Pour the white wine into the sauté pan and stir. Allow the wine to reduce by at least half before adding the tomato puree, oregano, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon nutmeg, and allspice.
• Bring the sauce to a simmer and allow to simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the sauce is quick thick. Set aside.
• While the tomato sauce is simmering, bring your water for the pasta in a stock pot to a boil. Cook the pasta as per the directions on the packaging except cut back the time by 1-2 minutes so that you don't end up with super mushy noodles in the end.
• While the pasta is cooking begin preparing the béchamel sauce by melting the butter in a large sauté pan. Once melted, slowly add the flour, whisking continuously to fully incorporate the fat and flour to make a roux. Continuing whisking for 2-3 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste.
• Slowly add the milk to the roux, again whisking continuously.
• Add the 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg and allspice to the béchamel and let cook for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.
• Place the egg yolks in a small bowl, and, while mixing them continuously, slowly add a tablespoon of the béchamel to the yolks at a time. Do this 4 or 5 times to temper the eggs. Then add the egg mixture to the béchamel and whisk to combine fully. Set aside. Note: DO NOT dump the yolks directly into the hot béchamel sauce without tempering them first or else you will end up with scrambled eggs.
• Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
• Once the pasta is cooked, strain it. Place 1/2 cup of butter in the empty stock pot and, once melted, add the ziti along with the egg whites. Toss to combine but be careful not to break the noodles.
• To assemble the pastitsio, in a 13 by 9 pyrex baking dish, apply a layer of cooking spray so that the food does not adhere to the dish. Then, spread the ziti across the bottom of the dish, being sure to evenly distribute the noodles. Then, place the tomato sauce on the ziti. Top the tomato sauce with the béchamel, making sure that the entire dish is covered. Sprinkle the freshly grated parmesan cheese on top and place in the over, uncovered, for 45 minutes or until the cheese and béchamel sauce start to brown slightly. Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes.
• Serve by cutting square or rectangular pieces (just as if you were serving lasagna).

BAKED ZITI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt generously and boil the pasta until al dente (tender but still slightly firm). Drain.
• Toss the cooked pasta with the quick tomato sauce, cubed mozzarella, half the Parmesan, all of the black pepper and crushed red pepper in a large bowl. Transfer the pasta to the prepared baking dish. Cover the top of the pasta with the sliced mozzarella and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan. Bake until lightly browned and hot, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.
• Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook the sausage until beginning to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the onion and garlic, stirring, until lightly browned, about 3 minutes more. Add the tomatoes and the herb sprigs and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes.
• Remove and discard the herb sprigs. Stir in 2 teaspoons salt and season with pepper. Use now or store covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2 months.

GREEK ZITI FROM FOOD AND WINE

Steps:

• In a large frying pan, simmer the chicken broth and the oregano until 1/2 cup of liquid remains in the pan, about 4 minutes. Stir in the chicken cubes, cover the pan, and remove it from the heat. Let the chicken steam in the hot broth until just done, about 8 minutes. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the ziti until just done, about 13 minutes. Drain the pasta and toss it with the chicken mixture, the feta, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and parsley. Stir until the cheese is completely melted. Toss in the cherry tomatoes. Suggested Pairing The acidity of the feta cheese and the lemon juice in this dish will work best with a light, fruity, just plain gulpable red wine. If you're feeling adventurous, try a Greek one such as Demestica.