Macaroni Pastitso

It was in Nicosia where I had this dish for the first time!  That was in 1977, but I still like it and the portion you see in this picture,

 is what we made and had 2 weeks ago, at home in Finland.

Because Pastitso is a Greek dish, in the background of the picture you see, I used the souvenir that was given to me as a present

by our friends the owners of the cozy Horiatiko Tavern in Agia Marina in Crete, during a visit to that island some years ago.

God bless them all and may keep their good food pleasing the thousands..

This is a delicious pasta and meat pie from Greece and Cyprus. If kefalotiri cheese is not available in the shops in your area,

you can replace it with parmesan cheese. I know, I know it is not the same but, coop with the situation.

Do not let this recipe scare you. You can do it and the reward is really worth it. Trust me!

Serves 6

500 g long tube pasta

5 tbsp butter melted

3 cups grated kefalotiri cheese

3 eggs

For the cream sauce:

1/3 cup butter

½ cup flour

2 cups milk

1 cup cream

1 egg

½ tsp nutmeg

salt and white pepper

For the meat sauce:

700 g ground beef

1 medium size onion chopped

2 crushed garlic cloves

2 tbsp olive oil

4 tbsp tomato paste

1 cup vegetable stock

½ cup chopped parsley

salt and pepper

Cook the pasta half way. Drain and mix with melted butter, nutmeg and half of the grated cheese.

Let the macaroni mixture cool down. Lightly beat the 3 eggs and add them to the mixture.

Start making the meat sauce by frying the garlic and onion in the olive oil.

Add the ground meat and stir well.

Add tomato paste, stock, salt and pepper.

Cover the pot and continue simmering the meat sauce for about 15 minutes. 

Before turning off the heat, add parsley and stir well.

Now it is time to make the cream sauce.

Melt butter in a saucepan.

Add flour and cook for 3 minutes over low heat and mixing melted butter with flour all the time.

Add milk and cream. Keep on stirring constantly.

Cook cream sauce for 2 minutes. Add nutmeg and let the sauce cool down for 5 minutes.

Add the egg to the sauce and whip the cream thoroughly.

Now that you have the macaroni mixture, the meat sauce and the cream sauce all ready and waiting for you to make Pastitso out of them, why

don´t you start assembling them into this mouth watering Macaroni & Meat Pie ?

Back to work.

Butter a deep oven dish (33 x23) and transfer 1/3 of the macaroni mixture to it.

Spread the macaroni evenly on the dish. Add 1/3 of the meat sauce and spread well over the macaroni.

Now it is time to spread 1/3 of the cream sauce..evenly.

Repeat spreading the pasta, meat sauce and the cream sauce until all are used.

Sprinkle the remaining grated cheese on top and bake for 40 minutes with oven temperature of 180 c.

Serve with Greek salad, may be?