Moussaka

Moussaka

Maybe you've never had, let alone made, Moussaka (correctly pronounced - Moo-sah-KAH', by the way). But if you're reading this blog post you've most likely both had it at a Greek restaurant and made it at home. Here is our version. Like many old world dishes there are regional, local and inter-familial variations on how particular dishes are prepared and what ingredients and seasonings are used. Moussaka is no different, but basically it includes layers of eggplant, ground lamb seasoned with cinnamon and cloves, thin sliced potatoes, tomatoes, onion, garlic, herbs and topped off with a creamy fluffy béchamel sauce. What's not to like, right?

   

It's been described as a Greek version of lasagna.... But it really isn't, it just looks like lasagna on the outside, the ingredients are layered and it's cooked in a rectangular casserole pan. So there you go.

Ingredients

For the vegetables

2 - 3 Yukon gold or Russet potatoes sliced very thin

1 sweet onion chopped

2 medium Italian eggplants sliced thin

1 Tablespoon thyme

salt and pepper

For the lamb

1 lb ground lamb

1/2 onion minced

1/2 tsp dried oregano or 1 tablespoon fresh

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 pinch ground cloves

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 cup diced tomatoes

Salt and pepper

For the béchamel sauce

2 cups milk plus

2 egg yolks

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 stick unsalted butter

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1/8 tsp nutmeg

Procedure - 

Lasagna

Lasagna...who doesn't love it? Just hearing the word "lasagna" takes your mind's eye immediately to a nice big square of cheesy, gooey, tomatoey, herby, meaty goodness. You can almost smell the savory aroma in your thoughts. Each part of Italy has their own regional take on this iconic dish. And here in America there are as many different ways to make a lasagna as there were Italian great grandmothers who their families claim made the best and most authentic lasagna - always from a special family recipe brought over from the Old Country. Well, this is not my great grandmother's lasagna nor is it a cherished family recipe from the Old Country. It is one we developed after eating and making different lasagnas over the years. We like it a lot and know you will too. 

Ingredients: for a 9" x 13"  x 3" casserole dish

Grape or cherry tomatoes

Lemon Zest

Garlic

Ground Chuck

Hot Italian sausage

Mozzarella shredded

Provolone shredded

Ricotta cheese

1/2 cup parsley divided

Fresh Basil

Salt and pepper

Roast the cherry tomatoes with the lemon zest in the oven for 30 minutes at 350

And of course you will need a good Italian red to go with this. We were able to get a Ciro' made in Calabria, a good earthy robust red. Or a good Sicilian Nero D'Avola would be good with this too.

Pasta with Uncooked Tomato Sauce

 
This is why you should have a vegetable garden, even if it's just a couple couple tomato plants, a couple eggplants a couple varieties of peppers and some basil in containers. We are fortunate to have a nice flat back yard that gets a lot of sun. This time of year here in Georgia so many herbs and vegetables are getting to their peak of flavor ready to be picked. Pulled three nice Cherokee purple tomatoes out of the garden this morning with the idea of using them to make a simple raw tomato sauce using just the tomatoes, garlic, fresh basil and olive oil. It was very aromatic with the individual ingredients keeping their identity.  You could clearly smell and taste the separate components - the sweet/tart Cherokee purple tomatoes, the lemony fresh basil, the pungent raw garlic and the grassy olive oil. The salty pecorino cheese was perfect shaved on top. And on the side, savory grilled Italian sausage.

Make sure to get the freshest ingredients possible. You won't be disappointed. Don't even try this with pale supermarket tomatoes. If you don't grow your own tomatoes and basil, wait until you can find some heirloom tomatoes and good basil at a farmers market. This will be your go-to pasta sauce for special occasions every summer. 

3 ripe home grown or heirloom tomatoes finely chopped. (Let their juices go into the sauce too.)

3 large garlic cloves finely chopped

1  nice handful of fresh basil hand torn into small pieces

1/2 cup of a good quality extra virgin olive oil

Pinch of salt and pepper

Combine the tomatoes, garlic, salt and pepper (and hot pepper if using) in a bowl. Pour in the olive oil and then the basil. Make this several hours ahead of when you are going to use it. Cover with plastic wrap and let it stand at room temperature so the flavors can mingle and develop. Stir every now and then and taste. Do not refrigerate. 

Grilled peaches with hoy honey for desert - 

Clay Oven #2

We are back in Georgia now but seven years ago we moved to Pittsburgh to take care of my aging father. We had to leave our cherished wood burning clay oven behind, hopefully though, to be enjoyed by the new owners of our house - Building a clay wood-fired oven. I knew I needed to build one in Pittsburgh. So... 

I got a slab was poured in early summer and I worked on it off and on in no hurry which I regret now (November 10) because I am at a difficult point in the build with the weather getting colder. I only have the thermal layer built for the dome and it isn't drying well. I'm afraid when the temp gets below freeing at night the residual water in the clay will freeze and then thaw during he day and repeat the cycle over and over and possibly weaken the structure of the dome and have a collapse. I already screwed up the arch over the opening by rushing things. Today I put burlap soaked in clay slip over the dome hoping it will help prevent cracks. I watched a video of a guy doin this. It sounded logical. I hope it helps.

The pad has been poured and here I am playing with the basic layout and form. The oven will be on the left above and the opening on the right will be for wood storage -

You can always use a volunteer or two to help!

Building the supports for the oven

Used a piece of cement board to hold the insulation under the oven floor

Empty glass bottles covered with a mix of cement and perlite

Did a sloppy job on the arch. It didn't fit the way I wanted it to and had to force things together. I'll try to fix it and to a little face lifting later.

I bought an inexpensive little space heater to use to blow warm air into the oven to help dry it out because the weather has been damp and the temp in the low 40's. 

Well..... SHIT!!!