dinner is served: Greek Style Lasagna
Last christmas, my mother-in-law blessed me with a wonderful cookbook that I never got around to opening until last night. That maybe a bit of an overstatement, as I've opened it a ton of times before but I never got around to actually cooking anything. Yesterday was my lazy day and after a few too many unsatisfying McDonald runs with the King, I decided to take advantage by re-creating this Greek style lasagna dish that I've been drooling over lately...I was a bit hesitant at first because I'm not the biggest fan of feta cheese. Personally, I think it smells like feet and I didn't want it to ruin my meal. But for the sake of my challenge journey, I said what the hey, and BOY..............was I glad I did that! This meal was absolutely phenomenal!
I apologize ahead of time for not taking pictures...I started cooking around 9pm and it takes a good 45 minutes alone just to prep everything. So as you may assume by the time I finished, it was already pushing midnight. If you do plan to try your hand at making this dish, I would advise you to start EARLY! The only thing I had an issue with was the time, other than that I followed the directions word for word (aside from seasoning the meat, always always season your meat) and it came out perfect. I enjoyed the gooey cheese, the hidden olives, and the hint of cinnamon that invaded my mouth from the meat mixture. After pairing it with a light greek salad and glass of merlot, this dish instantly became one of my favorites :) Ummmmmhmmmm!!!
Makes: 12 servings
Prep: 45 minutes
Bake: 35 to 40 minutes
Ingredients
9 dried lasagna noodles (about 8 oz.)
1 pound ground lamb or beef
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1/4 cup dry red wine or beef broth
1 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1-3/4 cups milk
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
12-1/4-ounce can sliced pitted ripe olives, drained
8 ounces crumbled feta cheese
8 ounces white cheddar cheese, shredded
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Cook noodles according to package directions; drain and rinse. In large skillet cook meat, onion, and garlic until meat is brown. Drain off fat. Stir in tomato sauce, wine, oregano, and cinnamon. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes. Set aside.
2. In medium saucepan melt butter; stir in flour and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add milk. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly; cook and stir 1 minute more. Stir in Parmesan; set aside.
To assemble: Start by putting 3 noodles in a 13x9x2 inch baking dish. Layer with meat mixture and cheese sauce. Add olives and rest of cheeses. Repeat layers twice. Bake, uncovered, 35 to 40 minutes or until hot. Let stand 10 minutes. Makes 12 servings.
P.S...If you Google this recipe, it will tell you to add eggs...I didn't do that because it didn't say to in my cookbook and it still came out delicious. Just an FYI :)
Enjoy!!!
