Meat and Macaroni Pie - Pastitsio

Name: Meat and Macaroni Pie - Pastitsio
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 10 serving(s)
Ingredients: 1 lb spaghetti, cooked al dente or 1 lb ziti pasta, cooked; 2 tablespoons olive oil (divided); 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder; 1 onion, chopped finely; 1 -2 teaspoon minced garlic; 1 1/2 lbs chopped meat (lamb or beef); 14 ounces diced seasoned tomatoes; 1 cup tomato sauce; 1/4 cup sliced pitted olive, chopped; salt and pepper; 1/2 tablespoon dried oregano; 1 tablespoon dried parsley; 2 tablespoons butter; 2 tablespoons flour; 2 cups milk; 2 eggs, beaten; 1 1/2 cups of grated cheddar cheese; 1/4 cup parmesan cheese

Submitted by Rita1652

"Comfort food.I posted this for the tour 2005 made it tonight and made some adjustments."

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photo by IngridH

Ready In:: 50mins
Ingredients:: 18
Serves:: 10

ingredients

1 lb spaghetti, cooked al dente or 1 lb ziti pasta, cooked
2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
¹⁄₄ teaspoon garlic powder
1 onion, chopped finely
1 -2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 ¹⁄₂ lbs chopped meat (lamb or beef)
14 ounces diced seasoned tomatoes
1 cup tomato sauce
¹⁄₄ cup sliced pitted olive, chopped
salt and pepper
¹⁄₂ tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried parsley
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
2 eggs, beaten
1 ¹⁄₂ cups of grated cheddar cheese
¹⁄₄ cup parmesan cheese

directions

Toss pasta with 1 tablespoon oil and garlic powder.
In a large frying pan, sauté the onion and garlic in a 1 tablespoon of oil. Add the meat and brown.
Add the tomatoes ,tomato sauce, salt, pepper, oregano and parsley. Simmer until cooked through and the mixture has the consistency of a sauce.
Using a greased oven proof dish, layer the cooked spaghetti and the meat mixture in the dish.
Heat the butter, flour in microwave oven to make a paste about 30 seconds.
Whisk eggs into milk. Add to roux and whisk to mix together. Micro 2 minutes. Whisk and micro 2 more minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Stir in grated cheddar cheese. Pour over the casserole. Sprinkle the parmesan cheese on top.
Bake for 45 minutes at 350°F.

Questions & Replies

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Reviews

Very good! I used 1 pound of lamb and 1/2 pound of beef. I don't typically like layering the sauce and meat in this type of dish, so I combined the meat sauce with the pasta, then topped with the white sauce. I used kalamata olives, fresh parsley from the garden, and added some nutmeg to the white sauce. I was a bit skeptical of making the sauce in the microwave, but was pleasantly surprised by the result! I would definitely make this again. Made for ZWT6.

IngridH
Oh this was so good. I left out the olives and added some red pepper flakes for some spice. Everyone enjoyed it, though I did get a suggestion to add more tomato sauce next time; I think we're just used to saucy pastas. Other than that though, it was great! I really loved the cream sauce; that definitely made it for me. It was a really nice balance of flavours. Thanks!

yamakarasu
Pure comfort food Rita! I made the recipe exactly as written and was very pleased with the results. This is very easy to put together as well. Thanks for a nice dinner recipe!

Brenda.
This is nicely seasoned and kid friendly. I made a half recipe with venison, and omitted the olives. It also baked in less than 30 minutes. The only thing I'd change would be to double the cheese sauce and put it in a larger baking dish so the cheese is more evenly distributed. The hubby liked this one, thanks!

Kaarin
Pastitsio has always been one of my favourite Greek dishes, and this recipe provided the base for how I like it. I made the pastitsio with lamb and for the tomatoes and tomato sauce, I used Evelyn's Fried Red Tomatoes Recipe #121041, which I always have in the freezer for when I’m making pasta dishes with tomato sauces. I wanted to increase the overall vegetable: meat ratio, so I close to doubled the quantity of tomatoes, added 1 red capsicum, cut into strips, 1 sliced zucchini and 2 cups of sliced mushrooms. I used Orecchiette instead of the spaghetti or ziti and I used kalamata olives. This created a fabulous blend of flavours. It also smelt wonderful while it was cooking. Always an added bonus! Everyone loved this, and there are several more meals in the freezer - always very satisfying! Thank you for sharing this recipe, Rita! It was a while since I’d made pastitsio, and I really enjoyed making this.

bluemoon downunder

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Tweaks

Pastitsio has always been one of my favourite Greek dishes, and this recipe provided the base for how I like it. I made the pastitsio with lamb and for the tomatoes and tomato sauce, I used Evelyn's Fried Red Tomatoes Recipe #121041, which I always have in the freezer for when Im making pasta dishes with tomato sauces. I wanted to increase the overall vegetable: meat ratio, so I close to doubled the quantity of tomatoes, added 1 red capsicum, cut into strips, 1 sliced zucchini and 2 cups of sliced mushrooms. I used Orecchiette instead of the spaghetti or ziti and I used kalamata olives. This created a fabulous blend of flavours. It also smelt wonderful while it was cooking. Always an added bonus! Everyone loved this, and there are several more meals in the freezer - always very satisfying! Thank you for sharing this recipe, Rita! It was a while since Id made pastitsio, and I really enjoyed making this.

bluemoon downunder