Easy Ground Beef Pastitsio

This is my take on various pastitsios I've see over the years. Budget friendly by using only ground beef, and family friendly by being lightly, yet deliciously seasoned.

meat filling:2  lbs ground beef
1 cup diced white onion
1/2 cup beef broth
2 teaspoons grated garlic
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed between your fingertips
pinch  cayenne
1 (28 oz) can  whole tomatoes, chopped, with juices (I take kitchen scissors and chop them right in the can)
kosher salt & pepper to taste

for the pasta topping:
1/2 lb elbow macaroni, or small shell pasta, cooked but not until fully done. It's going to cook more in the oven, so just barely al dente is fine. Drained.
1/2 stick butter
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cup milk
1 cup heavy  cream
1/4 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
kosher salt and pepper to taste
2/3 cup plain yogurt
2 large eggs, beaten
2 cups fresh grated parmesan, divided

for breadcrumb topping:
2 cups coarse bread crumbs
1/4 of the grated parmesan
2 Tablespoons very soft butter
pinch kosher salt and pepper
parsley to sprinkle

To Make! :

Cook pasta as directed above, and set aside.
In a large skillet, brown ground beef, being careful not to mash up the ground beef too much. Larger chunks than  you would for spaghetti sauce is nice.
Add onion, garlic, herbs and spices, tomato paste, salt and pepper, and stir just to melt the tomato paste in  and distribute the spices.
Drain off accumulated fat, if needed.
Add beef  broth and tomatoes. Stir to combine, taste for salt and pepper, keeping in mind the parmesan added later will lend some saltiness.
Lower heat to a simmer, being careful to not stir too much,  and start on the white sauce for the pasta.

In a medium saucepan over low heat, melt the butter.
When the butter begins to bubble a bit, add flour all at once, and whisk quickly until all butter is absorbed. Stir constantly for about 2-3 minutes over low heat.
Slowly whisk  in the milk, whisking vigorously to avoid lumps.
When mixture is smooth, add cream and turn up heat just a bit to thicken a little quicker.
Add pinch of kosher salt and a good amount of pepper (or to your pepper preference).
Grate in about 1/8-1/4  teaspoon nutmeg
Turn off heat and stir in parmesan cheese and yogurt.
Quickly stir in beaten eggs, stirring until completely blended in.
Stir in pasta. Set aside.

Preheat oven to  350 degrees

for the crispy bread crumb topping:
 Mix together  all bread crumb topping until  well combined. Set aside.


Assemble !:


In a 9x13 baking dish, spread the  meat mixture evenly.
Carefully spoon pasta mixture over meat mixture, even  as possible without mixing meat and pasta.
Sprinkle on bread crumb topping  and parsley.

Bake, uncovered, until hot and bubbly and golden! About 30-45 minutes.

Awesome Au Gratin Potatoes

I love piling these onto green beans! SO good!  You can make this ahead of time, just save the french fried onion topper until the potatoes are in the oven and almost done so they don't get soggy.

Keep peeled potatoes in water to keep them from turning brown while you peel and slice the rest!

You can choose to just slice the onions, instead of dicing, I just dice them due to the preferences of others I cook for.
The amount of cheese, salt and pepper in this dish is up to you and your tastes too.
Also, if you like some zip to your dishes, try adding one seeded & deveined minced jalapeno to this, and pepperjack cheese instead of cheddar. Fantastic!

• 4-5 cups of peeled (your choice) and thin sliced potatoes, about 5-6 small/medium.
• 1/2 cup diced white onion
• 1 can cream of celery soup (undiluted)
• 2-3 cups cheddar cheese, grated. Try not to get the pre-grated, not only do you get LESS cheese (they add cornstarch and such so the cheese doesn't stick together, and since it's sold by weight- you get less), but grating your own results in much creamier texture.
• fresh grated parmesan cheese, maybe 1/2 cup
• small (2.8 oz) can french fried onions
• dried rosemary
• dried thyme
• salt and pepper to taste
• butter or margarine
• dried or fresh parsley for garnish

Spray a 2.5 quart round casserole dish with spray oil.
In a large bowl, combine potatoes, onion and undiluted soup.Try to separate as many of the slices as possible, when mixing, so they all get coated and they cook better.
Sprinkle with couple good pinches of salt and pepper.
Take a good pinch of rosemary, maybe about 1/8 teaspoon, and rub it between your fingertips, crushing so not have big twigs of rosemary and to get the flavor out. Do the same for the thyme.

Put a layer of potato mixture in the bottom of casserole dish, about 5 pea-sized dots of butter or margarine, sprinkle a handful of cheddar cheese, and grate some parmesan cheese down over it; maybe a tablespoon or two.
Repeat twice, for a total of 3 layers, ending the top layer with cheese and parmesan.
Cover and cook at 350 degrees for about 1.5-2 hours, depending on how soft you want your potatoes. Test with fork in the center.
When the potatoes are your desired doneness, uncover and add the French's onions, more pepper and parsley. 

Cook uncovered, for about 5 minutes. Be careful because the onions can burn fast.

Serve over green beans! YUMM!


If you wish, you can instead, top the potatoes with a mixture of breadcrumbs, butter and parmesan.