μουσακάς OR Greece and Grease and Geeks, Oh MY!

Now that I've written the post title, I've realized that I'm used the "oh my" line before. Let no one tell you that I'm original :) And speaking of not being original, I did a mish-mash recipe steal from the Tyler Florance show I saw today for dinner this evening. For those who read Greek, or can tell what this post is about from the picture above (really? can anyone tell?), I made a me-version of Moussaka. In case its not clear - the Greece is pretty straight forward, the Grease is cause I should have used leaner beef, and the Geeks - well I guess its just one geek, me.

The me-version of something is usually about substitution. I'm willing to buy a set of ingredients, but everything else will just have to be substituted for what we have in the house. For this Moussaka, I used 2% milk instead of whole and cream mixture, parmesan cheese for layering, tomato sauce instead of crushed tomatoes, and cut the eggs out of the bechamel. Also, Tyler's recipe doesn't call for a bechamel, but instead adding feta in the layers. BOO Moussaka HAS to have bechamel. This turned out tasting totally delicious, but I can't say it looks very pretty. The layers didn't set the way I would have liked, but I would still make this again and again.

Moussaka
1 lb ground meat (I used beef, but I've also used lamb)
2 large eggplants, ends cut off, peeled and sliced into 1/2 thick slices
1 medium size onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
6 oz tomato sauce
1/2 cup white wine
olive oil
salt and pepper
oregano and basil
1/4 cup butter
1/4 flour
2 cups milk
parmesan cheese
nutmeg
cinnamon

Salt and pepper the eggplant slices. Brown both sides of slices of eggplant in an even layer with a tbs of olive oil in a saute pan. It will probably be necessary to do this in batches. Add olive oil as necessary. After browning, let the pieces drain on a paper towel.

Add the onion and garlic with some olive oil into a pan. When the onions become translucent, add the meat and brown on med heat. Salt and pepper. After the meat has brown, add 1/2 cup white wine and let reduce. Add in tomato sauce, basil and oregano (a shake of each) to the pan. Add a final shake of cinnamon. Season more if necessary.

To make bechamel: melt butter in a sauce pan and add flour. Wisk, cooking for 5-10 minutes. Heat the milk in the microwave or on the stove before adding to the roux. Add to the roux and wisk until sauce thickens significantly. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Grate 1/4 cup cheese into sauce and stir.

To assemble: In an 8x8 (I used a 9 inch pie plate) place a layer of eggplant into the bottom. Spread half the meat sauce over the eggplant. Grate a thin layer of cheese on top of the meat sauce. Add the rest of the eggplant in a layer, the rest of the meat sauce, more cheese and then pour the bechamel over top. Grate some more cheese over the bechamel and bake at 375 for 35 minutes. Let the Moussaka rest for 30 minutes, then EAT!