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pastitsio
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5 from 1 vote

Pastistio

Servings: 8
Calories: 445kcal

Equipment

  • 9x13 casserole dish

Ingredients

Meat Layer

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1.5 lbs ground burger
  • 1 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1/2 cup dry red wine
  • 1/2 cup beef broth
  • 1 28oz can crushed tomatoes
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 tsp white sugar
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 Parmesan rind
  • salt and pepper to taste

Pasta Layer

  • 454 gr bag of penne pasta
  • 1/2 cup feta, crumbled
  • 1 tbsp olive oil

Bechamel Sauce

  • 4 tbsp butter
  • 4 tbsp All-purpose flour
  • 3 cups whole milk, warm
  • 1/2 cup Kefolatyri cheese
  • ground nutmeg
  • salt and white pepper
  • 2 egg yolks

Instructions

Meat Layer

  • Heat oil in a dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook about 2-4 minutes until starting to soften. Add garlic and cook an additional minute stirring and watching to ensure it doesn't brown.
  • Add beef and cook, breaking it up as you go. I cook the beef until any fat has evaporated and the beef has started to brown a little. Push some beef to the side of the pot making room to add tomato paste right to the bottom of the pot. Stir and cook for a minute while mixing into the beef. Season with salt and pepper.
  • Deglaze and scrape up any bottom bits with the wine cooking for 1-2 minutes. Add beef broth and crushed tomatoes.
  • Toss in bay leaves, sugar, cloves, cinnamon and Parmesan rind. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Let simmer 30 - 45 minutes to thicken mixture.

Pasta Layer

  • Cook pasta in salted water according to instructions. Remove from water 2 minutes early. Drain and pour into a bowl. Toss with olive oil and feta cheese.

Bechamel Sauce

  • Melt butter in large saucepan over low-medium heat. Whisk in flour and cook 1-2 minutes.
  • Pour in half the warmed milk whisking continuously until sauce starts to thicken. Continue stirring while adding the remaining milk. Keep whisking to ensure no lumps until mixture is creamy and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
  • Remove pot from heat and stir in salt, pepper, nutmeg and cheese. Quickly whisk in egg yolks to ensure they don't cook.

Assemble

  • Preheat oven to 375 F.
  • Grease the casserole dish with olive oil or butter. Pour in the pasta spreading to ensure even on bottom of dish.
  • Spread the meat sauce all over the pasta. Pour on the bechamel sauce ensuring it covers the entire surface. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until bubbling and top is lightly browned. You can turn the oven to broil for the last couple of minutes if the top is not browning. Be sure to watch it if you turn it to broil as it will brown rather fast.
  • Remove from oven and let sit 10-15 minutes. Serve.

Nutrition

Serving: 250g | Calories: 445kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 34g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 143mg | Sodium: 319mg | Potassium: 437mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 461IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 190mg | Iron: 2mg