Musaka cu Tatei

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 500 g tagliatelle pasta
• 4 eggs
• 20 g butter
• 1 kg lean minced pork
• 2 tbsp leek, white part only, cut into half rings
• 2 tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 tsp fennel seeds, alternatively 2 tbsp chopped fennel greens
• 150 ml milk
• 3 slices of toast
• 90 g butter flakes
• 4 tbsp cheese, grated, preferably Cașcaval
• 2 eggs
• 100 ml cream, sweet
• salt and pepper

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 2 hours 10 minutes; Total time approx. 2 hours 40 minutes

Romanian minced meat casserole with pasta and cheese

Cook the tagliatelle in plenty of salted water according to the package instructions. Drain well and let cool. Beat four eggs with two teaspoons of salt, then toss the pasta in the egg mixture to coat evenly. Cut the toast into cubes and soak in milk for a few minutes. Knead the minced pork with the leek halves, the chopped parsley, the toasted fennel seeds, the drained toast, a teaspoon of salt, and a generous pinch of pepper. If you like it spicier, you can also add chili. Stir the mixture again vigorously with a wooden spoon to make it more fluffy. Butter a three-liter casserole dish with a lid. Place one-third of the pasta on the bottom. Top with half of the minced pork and one-third of the butter knobs. Continue with the pasta, minced pork, butter knobs, pasta, and the last of the butter knobs. Bake, covered, for half an hour in an oven preheated to 200 degrees Celsius. Meanwhile, mix the grated cheese with the cream and two more eggs. Pour the mixture over the casserole and return it to the oven for another hour. You can remove the lid 15 minutes before the end of the cooking time to allow the surface to brown slightly.