Pastitso, A Greek Recipe
My Greek Pastitso Recipe came from my husband's Aunt Sarah who got it from her mother, Stravula who was an immigrant from Greece. When I asked her for the recipe she said she didn't use one. I asked her to give me a shopping list and I would buy the ingredients and take notes while watching her assemble the Pastitso recipe. I'm so glad that that she agreed because my family loves this Greek Pastitso Recipe. It is a little involved so make sure you set aside some time. It is worth it!
Assemble these ingredients for this Greek Pastitso Recipe
Put these ingredients on your shopping list
Meat Filling:
2 lb hamburger
3 Tablespoons tomato paste
1 large onion, chopped
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Sauce:
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
2 Tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
dash white pepper
Pasta:
1 lb mostaccioli, penne or ziti partially cooked
1/2 cup Romano cheese
6 eggs, separated
1 stick butter
Brown the Hamburger for Greek Pastitso
Brown the Meat Filling for Pastitso
Meat FillingBrown hamburger.
Add tomato paste, chopped onion and cinnamon.
If you put in too much cinnamon add a little sugar to offset the bitterness.
Often times I will do this ahead of time and freeze it. It is one less thing to deal with on the day you assemble the recipe.
Hint: If you are using very lean ground beef I recommend adding some healthy oil to it. Last time I made pastitso I added some coconut oil to the browned beef and it made the finished product nice and moist. You don't want it to be too dry.
Calphalon Commercial Hard-Anodized 12-Inch Everyday Pan with Lid
Brown the hamburger for this Greek Pastitso Recipe
This is a great pan for browning the hamburger for Pastitso but it has so many other uses that it will become an old standby in your kitchen.
This pan has received 5 star reviews from 497 Amazon customers.
Calphalon Commercial Hard-Anodized 12-Inch Everyday Pan with Lid
Amazon Price: $39.99 (as of 12/27/2009)
The 12-in. Everyday Pan is an all-purpose pan. Use it for searing, browning and sauteing vegetables and meats. It also works well for making paella, jambalaya and all-in-one meals that you can bring right to the table to serve. The 2 loop handles make for easier lifting.Backed by a lifetime warranty, Calphalon's Commercial Hard-Anodized Cookware is made to professional standards, offering the home chef unsurpassed cooking performance, superior construction and lasting durability. The aluminum construction provides superior cooking performance by distributing the heat evenly so there are no hot spots as you cook. And because it's made entirely of metal, each pan can be used in the oven and under the broiler
Make the Sauce for Greek Pastitso
This is a White Sauce
Sauce
Melt the butter in a saucepan.
Stir in the flour.
Gradually add the milk.
Add white pepper.
This is just like white sauce. Stir the sauce constantly until it starts to boil. Simmer 1 minute to cook out the flour taste. Set aside.
Cook the Pasta for Greek Pastitso
Cook the Pasta and add Butter and Romano Cheese
Pasta
Cook the pasta partially but almost done*.
Drain
While still hot, add one stick of butter and 1/2 cup Romano Cheese**.
Stir, cover and set aside to melt.
Photo by: amanky
Prepare the Eggs for Greek Pastitso
Separate the eggs and beat
Eggs
Separate eggs.
Beat whites till frothy.
Add yolks and beat.
Add white sauce while beating.
Put 4 or 5 big spoonfuls of egg mixture into meat and mix.
Put 1/2 of egg mixture into pasta.
Add more cheese if desired.
Egg Separator - Stainless Steel
Separate the Eggs for Greek Pastitso
An egg separator make this job so much easier!
Cuisinox Egg Separator - Stainless Steel
Amazon Price: (as of 12/27/2009)
Product Description
Easily separates egg white from the yolk. Simply crack open the egg into the separating dish; the white will run through into the supporting cup leaving behind the yolk in the dish, both ready for further use.
Set of 2: egg separator and collector cup.
KitchenAid Artisan 5-Quart Stand Mixer
The Kitchen Aid Artisan Mixer also comes in beautiful Cornflower Blue
What color is your kitchen? Whatever it is there is probably a Kitchen Aid Artisan Mixer to match. Perfect for many kitchen jobs including beating eggs for this Greek Pastitso Recipe.
KitchenAid KSM150PSCO Artisan Series 5-Quart Stand Mixer, Cornflower Blue
Amazon Price: $399.99 (as of 12/27/2009)
* 325-watt mixer with 10 speeds; 5-quart stainless steel bowl
* Tilt-back head for easy access to mixture
* 2-piece pouring shield with large chute for adding ingredients
* Includes flat beater, dough hook, and wire whip
* Measures 14 by 8-2/3 inches by 14 inches; 1-year warranty
Assemble the Greek Pastitso Recipe
The first layer is pasta
Spray the 9 x 12 pan with PAM or something similar.
Spread half of the noodles in the bottom of the 9 x 12 pan.
Layer in all of the meat mixture.
Put the rest of the pasta on top.
Pour remaining egg mixture on top.
Bake at 350 for about 50 minutes.
Le Creuset Stoneware Baking Dish
Perfect for my Greek Pastitso Recipe
This elegant yet serviceable Le Creuset baking dish is perfect for baking Greek Pastitso.
Le Creuset Stoneware 12 1/2 by 9 1/2 Inch Rectangular Baking Dish, White
Amazon Price: $44.95 (as of 12/27/2009)
Amazon.com Review
It's easy to prepare enchiladas ahead of time in this classic, rectangular baking dish: take it right out of the freezer, put it in a cold oven, then heat as high as 500 degrees F. Or use the dish under the broiler or in the microwave. You can even serve directly from this colorful, pleasing cookware, making a statement with both food and style. The easy-to-clean enameled stoneware resists chipping and staining, and will not absorb odors or flavors. Its generous, sure-grip handles make it easy to carry a hot dish from oven to table. --Schuyler Ingle
Greek Pastitso Recipe Finished
You might notice that one side of the Pastitso is browned and one is not. Some of us like the noodles on top crunchy and some don't. I put aluminum foil over half of the Pastitso so everyone can have it as they like it.*Aunt Sarah taught me to put a few drops of oil into the water when cooking pasta. This will keep it from boiling over.
**Romano Cheese comes in a canister like Parmesan. It is hard to find Romano by itself. Sometimes it comes as a blend with Parmesan and that is fine too.
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Greek Pastitso Recipe for Printing
Copy and paste into Word to print it out
GREEK PASTITSO
Meat Filling
Brown hamburger.
Add tomato paste, chopped onion and cinnamon.
If you put in too much cinnamon add a little sugar to offset the bitterness.
Often times I will do this ahead of time and freeze it. It is one less thing to worry about on the day you assemble the recipe.
Sauce
Melt the butter in a saucepan.
Stir in the flour.
Gradually add the milk.
Add white pepper.
Pasta
Cook the pasta partially but almost done.
Drain
While still hot, add one stick of butter and 1/2 cup Romano Cheese.
Stir, cover and set aside to melt.
Eggs
Separate eggs.
Beat whites till frothy.
Add yolks and beat.
Add white sauce while beating.
Put 4 or 5 big spoonfuls of egg mixture into meat and mix.
Put 1/2 of egg mixture into pasta.
Add more cheese if desired.
Assemble
Spray the 9 x 12 pan with PAM or something similar.
Spread half of the noodles in the bottom of the 9 x 12 pan.
Layer in all of the meat mixture.
Put the rest of the pasta on top.
Pour remaining egg mixture on top.
Bake at 350 for about 50 minutes.
The Olive and the Caper: Adventures in Greek Cooking
The Olive and the Caper: Adventures in Greek Cooking
Amazon Price: (as of 12/27/2009)
Traditional Greek cuisine favors sour tastes: lemons, capers, vinegar, wild herbs. Cooking with these pungent ingredients takes a sure hand or, failing that, a good recipe. Hoffman's book supplies the latter in abundance; it attempts nothing less than to capture the whole of Greek food culture between covers. That includes side notes on language, myth, literature and botany; details of regional specialties; lists of native greens; and an explanation of why we say "Greek" instead of "Hellenic." Like many warm-weather cuisines, Greek food relies on an abundance of grilled meats and fish and dressed greens. Hoffman presents them in dazzling variety,
Pastitso Recipes
There are lots of variations on Pastitso
- Pastitso Learn to Cook 101
- A variation on Pastitso that includes some different ingredients such as wine, sugar and parsley.
- Pastitso
- This was a recipe from my husband's family - they were Greek and the recipe was handed down from his grandfather. It isnt the easiest to do, lots of pots and pans - but if you are not afraid to cook and like the idea of 'Greek lasagna'
- Pastitso Makaronia Me Feta
- Another Pastitso recipe.
- Pastitso Aka Greek Lasagna
- This is a authentic recipe is from my neighbor. She makes it every year for as part of their Greek Easter dinner. I think it is from Jeff Smith's Greek Cookbook. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
- Martha Stewart's Pastitsio
- Martha Stewart's version of Pastitso.
Have you ever tried Pastitso?
This is a family favorite here. It is not a simple recipe so I try to make some of it ahead of time. Do you think you might like to try it?
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Reply
- AndyPo AndyPo Sep 29, 2009 @ 5:46 am
- Sounds delicious
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- OhMe OhMe Aug 23, 2009 @ 12:16 am
- Yummy. This sounds delicious and your lens looks great. Lensrolling to Ohme's Recipes and I hope you will add this to my plexo.
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- seashell2 seashell2 Jul 31, 2009 @ 12:06 pm
- I have to say I have never heard of this dish! Looks great! Nice work!
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- tandemonimom tandemonimom Jul 24, 2009 @ 11:10 am
- Ohhh, this looks so yummy! My hubby is a HUGE pasta fan; I'll have to try this one!
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- lollyj lollyj Jul 20, 2009 @ 4:42 pm
- We love pasta dishes of all kinds. This one looks DELICIOUS!! Love the featured pans and dishes too.
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- bdkz bdkz Jul 10, 2009 @ 7:47 pm
- AWESOME!
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- rms rms Jul 10, 2009 @ 8:28 am
- Wow! I can't wait to try this one!
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- Susan52 Susan52 Jul 10, 2009 @ 7:54 am
- I've actually made this before, but it's been a very long time. So glad you've reintroduced me to the recipe. Great pictures! Love this blue and white, Greek flag-colored lens!
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- Treasures-By-Brenda Treasures-By-Brenda Jul 10, 2009 @ 6:36 am
- Yummy! Can I come for dinner? Blessed!
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- Joan4 Joan4 Jul 10, 2009 @ 6:29 am
- What a treasure you have in that recipe! I am glad you asked your husband's Aunt Sarah for details so that you could write it down! Looks wonderful!
by stargazer00
My husband has a Greek heritage and when we got married he asked me to learn to cook his favorite Greek foods. The whole family is hooked on Greek fo... (more)
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