PASTICHIO

Pastichio

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

Bechamel Sauce Ingredients

• 8 tbsp salted butter

• 8 tbsp flour

• 4 c whole milk, warm

• 4 lg egg yolks

• 1 bay leaf

• ⅛ tsp nutmeg

Bechamel Sauce Prep:

1. Add milk and bay leaf to a sauce pan and simmer until warm.  

2. Melt butter in another saucepan over medium heat.  Add flour and cook, whisking constantly until smooth, about 3 minutes.  

3. Add warm milk while whisking constantly until smooth and discard bay leaf.  

4. Once thickened (2-3 minutes) turn off the heat.  

5. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and add 1 ½ cups of sauce to eggs, stirring constantly to temper them.  Add all back into the saucepan and add the nutmeg.  

6. Salt & pepper to taste, set aside to cool.

Lamb Filling Ingredients

• 1 lg yellow onion, diced

• 3 cloves garlic, minced

• 3 lb ground lamb

• ¾ c Parsley, chopped

• 1 Tsp Coarse Kosher Salt

• 1 Tsp Pepper

• 1 ½ Tsp Cinnamon

• ¼ Tsp Nutmeg

• 1 ½ Tsp Oregano

• 16 oz can Tomato Sauce

• ⅔ c Red Wine

• Salt + pepper, to taste

Lamb Filling Prep:

1. In a cast iron skillet, on medium heat, add onions, lamb, salt + pepper.  Saute until meat is cooked, drain excess fat.  Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds

2. Next, add cinnamon, nutmeg, oregano, parsley, tomato sauce, wine and cook for 10 minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste, set aside to cool.

Pasta

• 1 lb of penne macaroni

• 2 ¾ c Kasseri or Kefalogriera cheese, shredded, divided

• ½ c parmesan cheese, grated

• 4 Tbsp Butter

Pasta Prep:

1. Cook pasta according to the box directions and drain.  

2. Melt butter in the same pan the pasta was cooked in, add pasta back into the pot and mix.

3. Add 1 cup of shredded cheese and all of the lamb mixture and mix.  

4. Mix in 1 cup of the Bechamel sauce.

Directions and Assembly:

Preheat the Oven to 350F

1. Spray a 9 x 13 casserole dish with nonstick spray.  Sprinkle ½ cup parmesan cheese on the bottom.

2. Add pasta/lamb mixture and sprinkle with ¾ cup Kasseri cheese.  Pour remaining Bechamel Sauce over the casserole evenly and top with 1 cup Kasseri cheese.

Bake for about an hour or until the top is golden brown.  Let sit for 15-20 minutes before cutting.