Moussaka Meat Or Vegetarian Food

VEGETARIAN MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400˚ F. Char the eggplants over a gas burner, turning with tongs, 4 to 6 minutes. Let cool, then slice 1/2 inch thick.
• Arrange the eggplant slices on two baking sheets. Brush with olive oil on both sides and season with salt. Roast until golden and cooked through, 20 to 22 minutes. Set aside.
• Combine 6 cups water and the lentils in a large saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Cook until the lentils are tender but not mushy, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain and let cool.
• Fill a large wide pot with 1 inch of vegetable oil. Heat over medium-high heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 350˚ F or a piece of bread dropped in turns golden quickly. Working in batches, fry the potato slices a few at a time until golden but not too brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the potatoes to a rack to drain and season with salt.
• Make the lentil-tomato sauce: Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a large wide pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened and starting to brown, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 more minute. Add the cooled lentils and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the tomato puree, tomato paste, 1/2 cup water, the oregano, 2 teaspoons salt and 3 grinds of pepper and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Make the béchamel: Combine the cinnamon stick, milk and heavy cream in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat; cook 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in the nutmeg and set aside.
• In another saucepan, melt the remaining 1 stick butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook, whisking, 3 to 5 minutes (do not let it brown). Slowly whisk in the heavy cream mixture, bring to a simmer and cook until thick and bubbling, 2 to 3 minutes; remove from the heat. Whisk the eggs in a large bowl, then temper them by whisking in 1 cup of the béchamel; whisk the tempered egg mixture into the remaining béchamel. Season with salt and pepper and add the feta.
• Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Oil an extra-large baking dish or roasting pan. Layer half of the eggplant in the bottom of the pan, then pour half of the lentil-tomato sauce on top, spreading it in an even layer. Top with a layer of half of the potatoes and then spread with half of the béchamel. Repeat the layers (eggplant, lentil-tomato sauce, potatoes, béchamel).
• Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes. (If the top browns too quickly, cover with foil during the last 15 minutes of baking.) Let cool, then cut into pieces.

MOUSSAKA (VEGAN OR VEGETARIAN, YOU CHOOSE.)

Steps:

• Making fake feta: Cube tofu into 1" cubes.
• Submerge in boiling water & simmer for about 5 minutes. Drain.
• Whisk together water, miso, vinegar & salt. Add tofu to marinade. Stir gently and refrigerate. Marinate for at least 2 days - up to 1 week. Shake the container periodically.
• Before using, remove marinade from tofu & crumble tofu with fingers. Use within 2 weeks after it's been crumbled. Side note; my 2 year old actually likes this all by itself!
• From this point it should take about 3 hours:.
• "Sweat" your eggplant slices in a single layer on towels by sprinkling generously with salt (kosher or regular) for 45 min - 1 hour, blotting every 15 min or so, flip after 30 min and salt other side. Rinse after eggplant has begun looking brown in color. then squeeze with hands to remove as much water as possible, finishing with a squeeze from some paper towels. Small batches of squeezing is necessary. Dip dried off eggplant slices in flour to lightly coat both sides. Fry in 1/4" oil until edges are lightly browned on one side + 2 minutes on the flip side. Drain on towel or on cooling rack.
• While eggplant is sweating, preheat oven to 350. Line a baking sheet w/ parchment paper. Spread potatoes evenly and bake for 30 minutes.
• Also, while eggplant is sweating, for the "meat" sauce:.
• Add boiling water to the TVP. Add in the worcestershire sauce and gently stir. In a pan, saute onion in 1 tsp oil until tender. Add garlic, continue to cook for 1-2 minutes over med low heat. Add TVP, vinegar, tomato sauce, oregano, parsley, salt, pepper and cinnamon. Stir.
• To assemble: Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Grease or oil an 8x8 or 9x9 baking dish that's at least 2" tall.
• Cover the bottom with 1/2 of the eggplant, then 1/2 of the potatoes, then 1/2 of the zucchini (uncooked), then all the meat mixture and 1/2 of the fake feta.
• Finish by layering the rest of the eggplant, potatoes, zucchini and "feta". Bake for 1 hour.
• While it's baking, prepare the bechamel sauce which you will add to the moussaka and continue to cook until an hour is up:.
• Melt the oil or butter, whisk continuously as you add the flour, then slowly add the milk. Keep at it until it begins to thicken which will happen all of a sudden. When this happens, turn off the heat and add 1/4 C egg beater (optional) and the salt. Whisk again just to mix.
• At this point it might be 20-30 minutes into cooking. Take out the moussaka and pour the bechamel sauce evenly to coat. Try to fill in any large gaps. If you have extra, just pour it on the middle, it should spread a little while cooking. Sprinkle lightly with cinnamon. Back into the oven it goes to complete the total of 1 hour cook time. Be sure the bechamel has a little bit of browning before taking it out just for looks.
• Let sit for 20 minutes before serving.
• If you want to make ahead, prepare dish and just don't make the bechamel sauce until you're ready to stick it in the oven. Same with freezing. No bechamel sauce for the freezer.

VEGETARIAN MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• Sprinkle eggplant slices with salt and set aside for 30 minutes. Rinse and pat dry.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Rinse and pat eggplant dry. Cook eggplant and zucchini in hot oil until lightly browned on both sides, about 3 minutes per side; remove with a slotted spoon to drain on a paper towel-lined plate, reserving as much oil as possible in the skillet
• Adding more oil to skillet as needed and let it get hot. Cook potato slices in hot oil until browned, 3 to 5 minutes per side; remove with slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel-lined plate, again reserving oil in the skillet.
• Saute onion and garlic in reserved oil until lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Pour in vinegar, bring to a boil, and reduce heat to medium-low; cook until liquid is reduced in volume and thick. Stir in tomatoes, lentils, 1/2 the juice from lentils, oregano and parsley. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 15 minutes.
• Layer about 1/3 of the eggplant, 1/3 of the zucchini, 1/2 the potatoes, 1/2 the onions, and 1/2 the feta into a 13x9-inch baking dish. Pour tomato mixture over vegetables; repeat layering, finishing with a layer of eggplant and zucchini.
• Cover and bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes.
• Stir butter, flour, and milk together in a small saucepan; bring to a slow boil, whisking constantly until thick and smooth. Season with pepper and nutmeg; stir. Remove from heat, cool for 5 minutes, and stir in beaten egg.
• Pour sauce over vegetables and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake, uncovered, for another 25 to 30 minutes.

VEGETARIAN MOUSSAKA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375. Place eggplant on a baking sheet and brush lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake until soft and golden, about 30 minutes, turning once.
• Boil potatoes 5 minutes until crisp tender.
• Combine Alfredo sauce, ricotta, eggs, and nutmeg in a medium bowl and set aside.
• In a small bowl, combine bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese; set aside.
• Heat 2-3 T. olive oil in a large, nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onion until it begins to soften (about 3 minutes). Add mushrooms and saute until soft (about 7 minutes). Add tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, and cayenne pepper. Simmer until thickened, about 15 minutes.
• Lightly butter a 13x9 baking dish. Sprinkle 1/3 of the bread crumb mixture on bottom; add the potatoes as the next layer. Cover with half the eggpalnt and half the mushroom/onion mixture. Repeat layers with 1/3 of the bread crumbs, remaining eggplant, and remaining mushroom mixture.
• Pour egg mixture over all and top with the remaining bread crumb mixture. Bake for 45 minutes (1 hour if made ahead) or until top is golden. Let stand for 10-15 minutes before serving.

MOUSSAKA (MEAT OR VEGETARIAN)

Steps:

• Prep the Vegetables:
• Using a sharp peeler, partially peel the eggplants, leaving strips of peel about 1 inch wide around the eggplant. Slice the eggplant in to 1/2 inch slices. Place the eggplant slices in a colander and salt them liberally. Cover them with an inverted plate that is weighted down by a heavy can or jar. Place the colander in the sink so that excess moisture can be drawn out. They will need to sit for at least 15-20 minutes, preferably an hour. The salt also helps to remove some of the bitterness of the eggplant.
• Peel the potatoes and boil them whole until they are just done. They should not get too soft, just cooked enough so that they no longer crunch. Drain, cool and slice them in 1/4 inch slices. Set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Line two baking sheets with aluminum foil and lightly grease. Add a splash of water to the egg whites and beat them lightly with a fork. Add breadcrumbs to a flat plate.
• Rinse the eggplant slices and dry with paper towels. Dip the eggplant slices in the beaten egg whites and then dredge them in the breadcrumbs, coating both sides. Place breaded eggplant slices on baking sheets and bake at 400 degrees for 1/2 an hour, turning them over once during cooking.
• When eggplant is finished cooking, lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
• Make the Meat Filling:
• In a large sauté pan, brown the ground beef (or lamb) until the pink color disappears. Add onion and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Add wine to pan and allow it to simmer and reduce a bit before adding cinnamon, allspice, parsley, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, and sugar. Allow the sauce to simmer uncovered for approximately 15 minutes so that excess liquid can evaporate. It should be a drier, chunkier, tomato sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Make the Béchamel Sauce:
• Melt butter over low heat. Using a whisk, add flour to melted butter whisking continuously to make a smooth paste. Allow the flour to cook for a minute but do not allow it to brown.
• Add warmed milk to mixture in a steady stream, whisking continuously.
• Simmer over low heat until it thickens a bit but does not boil.
• Remove from heat, and stir in beaten egg yolks and pinch of nutmeg. Return to heat and stir until sauce thickens.
• Assemble the Moussaka:
• Lightly grease a large deep baking pan (lasagna pan). Sprinkle the bottom of pan with breadcrumbs. Leaving a 1/4 inch space around the edges of the pan, place a layer of potatoes on the bottom. Top with a layer of eggplant slices.
• Add meat sauce on top of eggplant layer and sprinkle with 1/4 of the grated cheese. Top with another layer of eggplant slices and sprinkle once again with 1/4 of the grated cheese.
• Pour the béchamel sauce over the eggplant and be sure to allow sauce to fill the sides and corners of the pan. Smooth the béchamel on top with a spatula and sprinkle with remaining grated cheese. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 45 minutes or until béchamel sauce is a nice golden brown color. Allow to cool for 15 - 20 minutes before slicing and serving.
• You can make this dish ahead up until the béchamel sauce and refrigerate. Make the béchamel sauce right before you intend to bake it.