Greek pasta casserole

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 1 m.-sized onion(s)
• 2 m.-large tomato(s)
• 250 g pasta (macaroni)
• 350 g minced meat
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 100 g Parmesan, grated
• ½ cup breadcrumbs
• 2 tbsp margarine
• 2 tbsp flour
• ½ liter of milk
• 3 eggs
• olive oil
• salt and pepper
• nutmeg

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 30 minutes

This is how the Greek national dish ‘Pastitsio’ tastes best to us

Since we love pasta dishes and all kinds of casseroles, I’ve tried many pastitsio recipes. This is the very first one I tried many years ago, and it’s still the one we like best. Dice the onion, peel the tomatoes, and dice them as well. Heat olive oil in a saucepan and sauté the onion. Add the ground beef, breaking it up with a fork while it cooks. Add the diced tomatoes and tomato paste, season with salt and pepper, and add a little water—about half a cup. Let this mixture simmer over low heat for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the macaroni, broken into pieces (you can leave it whole), in boiling salted water. When it’s done, drain it and toss it with the ground beef mixture. Now add half of the Parmesan cheese and toss it with the pasta. Pour the pasta and ground beef mixture into a baking dish dusted with breadcrumbs. Now heat 2 tablespoons of margarine, add the flour, and sauté. Deglaze with milk, stirring well (with a whisk!) to avoid lumps. Season the sauce with salt, pepper, and nutmeg and bring to a boil. Then remove the sauce from the heat. Whisk the eggs, season with a little salt and nutmeg, and stir into the sauce. Bring the sauce back to a boil briefly and add the remaining Parmesan. Pour this sauce over the pasta and ground beef mixture and spread it out. Bake at 220°C for about 30-40 minutes. The casserole should have a nice golden brown crust. To serve, cut into square pieces. It also tastes delicious reheated. You can also omit the Parmesan if you don’t like it or if you don’t have any at home. I’m not too particular about the number of eggs; I’ve made the dish with two before. A fresh, green leaf salad goes very well with it.