Pastizio – Greek macaroni casserole

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 500 g minced meat
• some rapeseed oil
• 1 onion(s)
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1 bottle of tomatoes, pureed, approx. 700 g each
• 1 bunch of parsley
• 5 mint leaves
• 4 tbsp butter
• 4 tbsp flour
• 1 liter of milk
• nutmeg
• 1 bay leaf
• salt and pepper
• 1 handful of halloumi
• 250 g durum wheat semolina
• 250 g durum wheat semolina, finely ground
• 1 egg(s)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• some cinnamon for serving

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Rest time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 1 hour 40 minutes

with homemade pasta from the pasta maker

Brown the minced meat in a little rapeseed oil. Add the finely chopped onion and fry until translucent. Then stir the tomato paste and cinnamon into the minced meat and continue to fry over low heat until the tomato paste begins to thicken. Pour the passata over the meat, along with the tomato puree and a little water, and simmer for about 15 minutes. Shortly before the end of the cooking time, add the chopped herbs to the sauce. While the sauce is simmering, prepare the béchamel sauce. Melt the butter in a saucepan and lightly toast it with the flour. Pour the milk into the butter and flour mixture, add the spices, and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Add salt sparingly; the cheese also adds salt. Simmer the béchamel sauce for a good 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Finally, add the cheese and let it sit in the sauce for another 5 minutes. For the dough, you will need a pasta maker, a standard die, and a macaroni and cheese die. I used the die for “Maccheroni Quadri.” Instead of homemade pasta, you can also use 500 g of store-bought macaroni. For the pasta, add both types of semolina to the machine. In a measuring cup, add the egg and olive oil to 190 ml of water and mix well. Start the machine and add the liquid. Scoop the dough once using a standard die, break it into small pieces, and return it to the machine. Let the dough rest for 20 minutes. Change the die, then select the kneading and squeezing program again and make the pasta. Place half of the precooked or raw pasta into a baking dish, cover with the mince sauce, and add the other half of the pasta on top. Cover the pasta with the béchamel sauce and bake the casserole at 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit) for about 30 to 40 minutes. Sprinkle the macaroni casserole with a little cinnamon to serve.