Lamb And Eggplant Aubergine Pastitsio Recipes

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the onions and cook until softened, then add the garlic and stir around the pan for 1 min more. Scoop the onions to one side of the pan, add the lamb and cook until browned. Pour off any excess oil from the pan.
• Add the spices and oregano, then tip in the aubergine. Fry for another 5 mins until the aubergine has softened a little, then crumble in the stock cube and add the tomatoes, along with half a can of water. Season, cover the pan and simmer for 30 mins.
• Uncover the lamb mince and continue to simmer until the sauce is thick and clinging to the meat - about 15 mins. Meanwhile, make the béchamel sauce. Warm the milk in a large pan with the bay leaves. Melt the butter in another large pan, stir in the flour to make a paste, then add the warm milk, ladle by ladle, stirring well between each addition, until you have a thick, smooth sauce. Season well and add the Parmesan. Meanwhile, cook the pasta following pack instructions, then drain.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Tip the mince into a large baking dish. Mix the macaroni into the cheesy sauce and pour this over the lamb. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Can now be frozen, defrost before cooking. Bake for 35-40 mins until golden brown and crispy on top. Leave to cool for 5 mins before serving.

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until soft, stirring often, about 8 minutes. Add the pepper flakes, garlic, herbes de provence and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the four-spice powder. Add the lamb, raise the heat to medium high and let cook, breaking up any chunks, until browned, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until reduced slightly. Add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Lower the heat, cover and simmer until thick, about 45 minutes.
• To make the bechamel sauce, bring the milk to a simmer in a medium pot set over medium heat. Melt the butter in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Whisk the flour into the butter and cook for 2 minutes. Whisk the warm milk into the flour mixture. Add the remaining 2 pinches four-spice powder and cook for 5 minutes at a simmer, whisking often, until thickened. Remove from the heat.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Whisking constantly, slowly pour a quarter of the milk mixture into the eggs. Whisk the egg mixture back into the pot. Whisk in 1 cup of the cheese. Fold in the yogurt. Season with salt and pepper.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta to al dente according to the package instructions. Drain and combine with the lamb sauce. Adjust the salt and pepper to taste.
• Transfer to a large baking dish and top with the bechamel sauce and the remaining 1 cup cheese. Bake until the top is caramelized, about 45 minutes. Garnish with the parsley.

Steps:

• Make lamb sauce:
• Cook onion in oil in a 4-quart heavy pot over moderately low heat, stirring, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add lamb and sauté over moderately high heat, stirring and breaking up lumps, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, salt, oregano, cinnamon, sugar, and pepper and sauté, stirring, 2 minutes.
• Stir in eggplant and tomatoes and gently simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until eggplant is just tender, about 40 minutes. Remove lid and simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened, about 15 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper.
• Preheat oven to 425°F.
• Make cheese sauce and cook pasta while lamb sauce is simmering:
• Melt butter in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, then stir in flour and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Whisk in milk and add garlic clove and whole clove, then bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Reduce heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, 5 minutes. Add feta, salt, and pepper and cook, whisking vigorously, until cheese is well incorporated.
• Beat eggs in a large bowl and gradually add sauce to eggs, whisking.
• Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until just al dente, then drain in a colander. Toss half of pasta with lamb sauce and half with cheese sauce.
• Assemble pastitsio:
• Pour pasta with lamb sauce into a wide shallow 3-quart baking dish, spreading evenly. Spoon pasta with cheese sauce on top, spreading evenly.
• Bake pastitsio, uncovered, in middle of oven until bubbling and top is golden, 25 to 30 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• Place eggplant in a colander set in a bowl or the sink; sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt and toss to coat. Let eggplant stand for at least 1 hour. Rinse off the bitter liquid and excess salt and drain well.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion and celery; cook and stir until onion has softened and turned translucent and celery is fragrant, about 5 minutes.
• While vegetables are cooking, combine ground cumin, oregano, rosemary, paprika, mint, salt, and black pepper in a small bowl or mortar and pestle and mix well; this is the lamb seasoning (see Cook's Note). Set seasoning aside.
• Stir eggplant cubes and garlic into the vegetables in the skillet, mixing well, and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Add chopped tomatoes and sprinkle with half of the lamb seasoning mixture. Reserve remaining seasoning. Stir gently and cook for 5 minutes more.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 2-quart casserole dish.
• Pour chicken broth and half the can of tomato sauce into the skillet and simmer for 10 minutes; add a little water if the sauce starts to get dry. Transfer the sauce to the prepared casserole dish.
• Return the skillet to the stove over medium-high heat and heat the reserved tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Place ground lamb into skillet and sprinkle with remaining seasoning mixture. Brown lamb in the hot oil, stirring frequently, until the meat is evenly browned; it should look like imperfect meatballs.
• Gently transfer the lamb to the casserole dish, pushing it down into the vegetable mixture so that it is at least partially submerged. Stir fresh lemon juice into the remaining tomato sauce and pour the sauce over the casserole.
• Bake uncovered for 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending upon how tender you like your vegetables.

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit/240 degrees Celsius.
• Add the eggplant, lamb, onion, oregano, oil, tomato paste, garlic, cinnamon, allspice, red-pepper flakes, 1 3/4 teaspoons salt and a good grind of pepper to a 10-by-13-inch/26-by-34-centimeter (or similar) roasting pan (tin) and mix well to combine. Bake until the mixture is well browned, stirring twice throughout and breaking apart the meat with a spoon, 30 to 35 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and continue to break apart the meat very well (don't worry if you break apart some of the eggplant, too). Add the canned tomatoes with their juices, lightly crushing the tomatoes by hand. Stir in the chicken stock and parsley then return to the oven and bake for another 35 minutes, stirring twice throughout, until the sauce is thick and rich and the eggplant is very soft. Remove from the oven and turn the oven temperature up to 475 degrees Fahrenheit/250 degrees Celsius.
• While the casserole is in the oven, prepare the topping: Whisk together the yogurt, yolks, flour, garlic and half the Parmesan with 1/4 teaspoon salt and a good grind of pepper. Once ready, spoon the yogurt mixture over the lamb and eggplant, gently spreading to cover. Top evenly with the remaining Parmesan, feta, pine nuts, parsley and red-pepper flakes.
• Bake until golden and bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool for about 15 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat, and brown the lamb on all sides. Mix in the eggplants, tomatoes, onions, green bell peppers, and garlic. Cook and stir until tender and lightly browned.
• In a small bowl, blend the tomato paste and water. Mix into the pot with the lamb. Season lamb with allspice, salt, and pepper. Reduce heat, and simmer about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally, until the meat shreds easily with a fork. Add a little water as necessary to keep the ingredients moist.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Cut the eggplants in half lengthwise, including the stems. Using a sharp paring knife, scoop out some of the flesh, leaving a shell that is 1/3 inch thick and reserving the scooped-out eggplant. Place the eggplant shells snugly in a single layer in a large (10-by-14-inch) rectangular baking dish. Brush the eggplant all over with 1/4 cup olive oil (use it all!) and sprinkle with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper. Pour 1/4 cup water in the baking dish, cover tightly with aluminum foil, and bake for 30 minutes, until the shells are tender when pierced with a small knife. Remove from the oven, discard the foil, and leave the oven on.
• Meanwhile, for the lamb filling, in a large (12-inch) skillet, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute for 5 minutes, tossing occasionally, until tender. Cut the reserved scooped-out eggplant into 1/2-inch dice (you should have about 2 cups). Add the eggplant to the onion and cook for 5 minutes, adding more oil if it seems dry. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Add the ground lamb and cook, mashing lightly with a fork, for 5 to 7 minutes, until no longer pink. Add the oregano and cinnamon and cook for one minute. Add the wine, tomatoes, marinara, parsley, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes, until the liquid evaporates. Spoon the filling into the eggplant halves in the baking dish. (You may have a little extra filling.)
• In a medium bowl, mash the ricotta, goat cheese, egg yolks, mint, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper with a fork. With a spoon, place large dollops of the ricotta mixture on the lamb filling and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the filling is hot and the topping is lightly browned. Serve warm, sprinkled with extra mint.

Steps:

• Heat broiler and line a baking sheet with foil or parchment.
• Brush both sides of eggplant slices with 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt. Arrange slices on prepared baking sheet and broil in batches until they are deep mahogany brown, turning once halfway through, 5 to 7 minutes per side.
• Adjust the oven to 375 degrees with rack positioned in the center.
• In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the remaining olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent, but not browned, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add ground lamb or beef, stirring frequently and breaking up meat into very small pieces with the side of a metal spoon. Season with remaining teaspoon salt, cinnamon and pepper. Sauté until meat is just cooked through. Taste and add more salt or pepper, or both, as needed.
• In a medium skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add pine nuts and reduce heat to medium-low. Stir nuts to coat them with butter and continue stirring constantly until nuts are golden brown, 2 to 4 minutes. Keep a close watch over the nuts; they can burn quickly once they begin to brown. Transfer nuts to a bowl while still warm and salt them lightly.
• Coat a 13-by-9-by-2-inch baking dish with remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Spread 1/2 cup of tomato sauce in the bottom of the dish. Lay 1/3 of the eggplant slices in a single layer over the sauce, covering as much surface area of the bottom of the dish as possible. Spoon half the meat evenly over eggplant. Pour 1/3 of the remaining tomato sauce evenly over meat. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the pine nuts. Layer again with eggplant, meat, tomato sauce and pine nuts. Finish with a layer of eggplant and cover with more tomato sauce, sprinkling top with pine nuts.
• Pour 1 cup warm water around the perimeter of the baking dish. (Sauce will thicken as it bakes.) Cover pan with foil and bake for 90 minutes. Remove foil and top eggplant evenly with mozzarella. Bake for 15 minutes longer, uncovered, or until the cheese is bubbling and golden. Serve eggplant warm, over rice.