has anyone got a good recipe for moussaka?

Question

also what is the best accompliment

Answer 1

Moussaka with Roasted Aubergines and Ricotta
Ingredients
1 lb (450 g) minced Scotch lamb
2 medium-sized aubergines
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped small
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1 heaped tablespoon chopped fresh mint
1 heaped tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 level teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 rounded tablespoons tomato purée
3 fl oz (75 ml) red wine
salt and freshly milled black pepper

For the topping:
9 oz (250 g) ricotta
10 fl oz (275 ml) whole milk
1 oz (25 g) plain flour
1 oz (25 g) butter
¼ whole nutmeg, grated
1 bay leaf
1 large egg
1 level tablespoon grated Parmesan (Parmigiano Reggiano)
salt and freshly milled black pepper

You will also need an ovenproof baking dish measuring 10 x 8 inches (25.5 x 20 cm), 2 inches (5 cm) deep, and a 14 x 11 inch (35 x 28 cm) baking sheet.

First of all you need to prepare the aubergines to get rid of their high water content and concentrate their flavour. To do this, remove the stalks and, leaving the skins on, cut them into approximately 1½ inch (4 cm) chunks. Then place them in a colander and sprinkle them with about 1 level dessertspoon of salt. Now put a plate on top of them and weigh it down with something heavy, then put another plate underneath to catch the juices. Leave them like this for 1 hour. Then, shortly before the end of this time, pre-heat the oven to its highest setting. When the hour is up, squeeze out any of the excess juice from the aubergines with your hands and dry them as thoroughly as you can in a clean cloth. Next, spread them out on the baking sheet, drizzle 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over them and toss them around to get a good coating. Now pop the baking sheet in the oven and roast the aubergines for 30 minutes or until they are tinged brown at the edges.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil in your largest frying pan and fry the onions and garlic gently for about 5 minutes. After that, turn the heat up high, add the minced lamb and brown it for a few minutes, turning it and keeping it on the move. Now cook the whole lot, stirring all the time, for 2-3 minutes. Then reduce the heat and, in a small bowl, mix the mint, parsley, cinnamon, tomato purée and red wine. When they're thoroughly combined, pour them over the meat, season well and cook the whole lot very gently for about 20 minutes, stirring from time to time so it doesn't catch on the base of the pan.

Now remove the aubergines from the oven and reduce the temperature to gas mark 4, 350°F (180°C). It's a good idea to leave the oven door open to cool it down a bit.

Next, make the topping by placing the milk, flour, butter, nutmeg and bay leaf in a saucepan. Using a balloon whisk, whisk over a medium heat until everything comes up to simmering point and the sauce becomes smooth and glossy. Now turn the heat down to its lowest setting and let the sauce cook gently for 5 minutes. Then taste and season, discarding the bay leaf, remove the saucepan from the heat and let it cool a little before whisking in the ricotta and egg. Give it a good whisk to blend everything thoroughly.

Finally, combine the roasted aubergines with the meat mixture and transfer it all to the baking dish. Then pour the topping over, sprinkle the surface with the Parmesan and bake on the centre shelf of the oven for 50 minutes, by which time the top will be golden brown. Let it stand for 10 minutes to settle

Serve with brown rice and a Greek-style salad of cucumber, tomatoes, olives and crumbled Feta cheese dressed with olive oil and fresh lemon juice.

or Try the following for a very quick moussaka
Ingredients
2 tablespoons red wine
2 tablespoons tomato purée
1 level teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 level teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon chopped mint
1 x 425g tin Marks & Spencer minced lamb
1 x 300g pack Marks & Spencer vegetable ratatouille
1 x 250g tub ricotta cheese
1 x 300g tub ready-made cheese sauce
2 large eggs
whole nutmeg
1 tablespoon ready-grated Parmesan cheese
salt and freshly milled black pepper

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 4, 350°F (180°C).

First of all, mix the red wine, tomato purée, cinnamon and mint together in a bowl, then add the contents of the tin of lamb. Mix all of this together thoroughly with a seasoning of salt and pepper.

Next, empty the contents of the pack of ratatouille into a sieve then, using the back of a tablespoon, squeeze out as much excess juice as possible.

Next the topping: all you do here is whisk the ricotta cheese and the cheese sauce together, then beat the eggs and add them to the sauce with some seasoning of salt and pepper and a few good gratings of nutmeg, then whisk the whole lot together thoroughly.

Now, in a baking dish (approx. 7½ inch/19cm square x 2inch/5 cm deep), spread out half the meat mixture over the base, then over that spoon the drained ratatouille. Add the rest of the meat mixture, spreading it evenly, then spread the ricotta sauce mixture over that. Finally, sprinkle the Parmesan over the surface and bake on a high shelf in the oven for about 30-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

OR Ingredients
75ml/6fl oz olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
675g/1½lb lamb mince
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1.25ml/¼tsp cinnamon
1.25ml/¼tsp allspice
2 x 400g/14oz tin of chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped
2 bay leaves
1 tsp fresh, soft thyme leaves
175ml/6fl oz white wine
4 medium aubergines, cut into 1cm/½in slices
salt and freshly ground black pepper
plain flour, for dusting

For the Béchamel Topping:
85g/3oz unsalted butter
85g/3oz plain flour
900ml/1½pt milk
85g/3oz parmesan, grated
115g/4oz gruyère, grated
2 egg yolks
1 egg
Method
1. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large casserole dish. Add the onion and cook gently for 10 minutes or until the onion is soft, but not coloured. Brown half the lamb in a frying pan and add to the onion. Add the garlic and break up the meat with a wooden fork until it has a loose texture. Brown the remaining lamb.
2. Stir the cinnamon, allspice, chopped tomatoes, oregano, bay leaves and thyme into the casserole. Add the rest of the browned lamb and de-glaze the pan with white wine. Pour straight into the casserole dish, reduce the heat and simmer for approximately 1 hour.
3. Place the aubergines in a colander, sprinkle with salt and leave for 30
minutes. This draws out any bitter juices.
4. Meanwhile make the bé chamel sauce. Melt the butter in a non-stick pan and stir in the flour. Take off the heat and gradually stir in the milk. Return the pan to the heat and stir continuously until the sauce thickens. Simmer over a gentle heat for 5-8 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in 55g/2oz of the parmesan and 55g/2oz of the gruyère cheese and season with salt and pepper.
5. Rinse the aubergines and pat dry. Dust the aubergines with flour and fry in batches in the remaining olive oil until golden on both sides, about 8 - 10 minutes. Drain on kitchen paper. Set aside until ready to construct the moussaka.
6. The white sauce should now have cooled enough to whisk in the egg and egg yolks.
7. Cover the base of an ovenproof dish (30 x 20cm/12 x 8in) with a third of the mince then cover with half the aubergine slices. Repeat the layers, ending in the last of the mince, then pour over the cheese sauce. Sprinkle over the remaining parmesan and gruyère. Bake in a preheated oven at 180C/350F/Gas4 for 50-60 minutes, until bubbling and golden. Allow the moussaka to settle for 5 minutes before cutting into squares and serving.
8. Serve the moussaka with a chunky tomato, cucumber, parsley and mint
salad and crusty bread.

Answer 2

factors 4 tbsp Olive oil 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped a million onion, diced 2 Aubergines, cut back into chunks 675g minced Lamb 3 plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped 284ml fowl inventory pinch floor cinnamon pinch floor cumin pinch freshly grated nutmeg a million tsp Mint, chopped For the sauce 50g Butter 25g flour 400ml Milk 150g Gruyere Cheese, grated 50g Parmesan cheese, grated 2 eggs technique a million. Preheat the oven to 220C/gas 7. 2. warmth 2 tablespoons olive oil in a frying pan. upload the garlic, onion and aubergine with the the rest olive oil and prepare dinner gently for 5 mins. 3. upload the lamb and brown for 2-3 mins, then upload the tomatoes. 4. Pour interior the fowl inventory and upload the spices. Stir, deliver to the boil and simmer for 10 mins. 5. Season the aggregate with salt, pepper and upload the mint. Spoon the aggregate right into a extensive baking dish. 6. To make the sauce: soften the butter in a pan. Stir interior the flour, blending nicely over a low warmth and prepare dinner for 30-60 seconds to make a roux. progressively whisk interior the milk, whisking thoroughly to ascertain there at the instant are not any lumps and proceed cooking till gentle. upload the grated cheese and season with salt and pepper. 7. eliminate from the warmth and funky slightly. Whisk interior the egg yolks. Pour the sauce over the lamb mixture and prepare dinner interior the oven for 10 mins till effervescent.

Answer 3

5 large eggplants, about 1.5 pounds each
salt and pepper
10 tablespoons butter
3 pounds ground beef
1.5 cups chopped onion
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/2 cup red wine
1/2 cup water
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon 3/4 cup grated kefalotiri or Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup breadcrumbs (or crushed milk biscuits)
8 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups hot milk
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
3 eggs, lightly beaten
vegetable oil for brushing eggplant

prep.

Peel the eggplant lengthwise. Cut into 1/2 inch rounds (or 1/4 inch thick lenght-wise slices), sprinkle with salt (to remove bitterness) and let stand in a colander (preferably under a heavy or weighted plate) for 1/2 hour. Rinse and dry the eggplant rounds.

Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a saucepan and sauté meat and onion until brown. Add tomato paste, parsley, wine, salt, pepper and water. Simmer until liquid has been absorbed. Cool. Stir in cinnamon, 1/2 cup cheese and half the breadcrumbs.
Melt 6 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add flour and stir until well blended. Remove from heat and gradually stir in milk. Return to heat and cook, stirring constantly until sauce is thick and smooth. Add salt, pepper and nutmeg. Combine eggs with a little of the hot sauce, then stir egg mixture into sauce and cook over very low hear for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Eggplant Preparation

Preheat the broiler.

Lightly brush eggplant slices with oil on both sides. Place on an un-greased cookie sheet and broil until lightly browned. Set aside to cool.

Assembly

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sprinkle bottom of a 10 x 16-inch pan with remaining breadcrumbs. Place a layer of eggplant slices on the breadcrumbs to completely cover the bottom of the pan, then spread meat mixture over eggplant slices (an option here, to ensure a more cohesive bottom, is to add a layer of cheese on top of the eggplant before topping with the meat mixture). Cover meat with remaining eggplant slices. Spoon sauce over eggplant; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup grated cheese. Bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 10 minutes before cutting. Serve warm.

Note: Moussaka can be prepared up to the cream sauce and finished the next day. This can also be baked, cooled, frozen and reheated.

Answer 4

Go to Culinary Chef at http://www.culinarychef.com for recipes.

Answer 5

just make a lasagne,
its similar, but much better