MAKE MINE A MOUSSAKA

I was stuck with a lot of minced beef last week - it sat in the fridge for a few days, staring at me with contempt. How to use it. "Not another lasagna!" we seemed to say to each other, "try something new!" the mince added, rather unkindly. So I fondled my cupboards and they graciously responded with a bag of raisins and some pistachio nuts. Pistachios, you may be interested to learn, are a nut my Persian father regularly fed my sister and I when we were wee - the connotations of this particular nut are endlessly nostalgic for me. A Middle Eastern jingle started to play in my head and with it I scurried to the supermarket, khombaks plinking, to make this dream a reality. I returned with some limes, coriander, yoghurt and aubergines and we were off - hurtling past Greece into the depths of the Middle East (whilst staying firmly put in Clerkenwell.)

I've never had Moussaka before (sorry!) but from what I've read it's pretty much a Greek lasagna - instead of beef, lamb and instead of pasta, aubergines with a bit of oregano and cinnamon. This was just not enough for me. No. The mince and I had other ideas. Last week's fish without chips had left me with a swelling spice drawer and I wanted to play! Looking back, the Greeks seem to have got it right - lamb instead of beef would have completed my heritage themed moussaka nicely, but the beef I used in the end worked charmingly.

Now to thank mother, fondly known as 'Bong'. Had she not told me about Evelyn Rose's moussaka earlier this week I doubt the idea would have even dared enter my small brain. So, thanks to both parents, a Jewish/Persian Moussaka has arrived on the scene and it's a good'un.

So Colourful: Middle Eastern Moussaka

Ingredients (this serves 6)

For the meat filling
600g minced beef/lamb
2 onions
4 large tomatoes, cut into quarters
A handful of pistachios
A handful of raisins
1 inch of ginger, grated
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
3 tsps caster sugar
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cinnamon
Zest of half a lime
Tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp sumac
1 tbsp smoked paprika
 salt and pepper

For the aubergines
3 aubergines, sliced lengthways
1 big glug of olive oil

For the topping
6 tbsps of yoghurt
2 egg yolks
Juice of 1 lime
Zest of half a lime


How to...

...cook the beef/lamb
First Preheat the oven at 140°C. Rub the beef or lamb with smoked paprika, salt and pepper.
Brown in a hot pan in small batches to get a good, even colour. When the meat is browned, sprinkle with sumac. Set aside in it's own bowl.

Onions, Turmeric, Cinnamon, Tomatoes, Raisins, Pistachios, Coriander

...deal with the onions
Thinly slice the onions and fry them slowly in oil. If the pan dries, add a little bit of water. When they're looking nicely jellyfishy (transparent and squidgy), add the ginger, turmeric and cinnamon. Make sure the spices are nicely cooked out - undercooked spices is one of my worsts - it makes for a grim, gritty texture and who wants to eat raw spices?! Set aside the onions in a bowl.

...cook the tomatoes
Rinse out the pan and fry the tomatoes in the olive oil on a low heat. When the tomatoes start to lose their shape a little, add the garlic and shortly after a tsp of caster sugar. Add the lime zest. Again, if the pan gets dry, don't be afraid to add a little more water. Set aside with the onions.

..cook the raisins and pistachios
Rinse out the pan and fry the raisins and the pistachios with a tsp of sugar. When the pistachios start to brown, put the mixture in the bowl with the tomatoes and onions.

...deal with the aubergines and combine
At this stage, combine all the ingredients in a bowl (browned meat and vegetables) with the coriander.
Next, fry the aubergines until they are well browned. Place them on kitchen towel and sprinkle them with sea salt.
In an ovenproof serving dish, layer the meat and aubergine starting and finishing with the meat mixture and place it in the preheated oven for 40 minutes.
Once cooked, allow to cool.

Layers of spiced meat and aubergine...just one more meat layer to go!

For the topping:
Mix together all the ingredients and when the moussaka is cool, add the topping. Now cook for another 25 minutes. So nice and yellow from the yolks!

Middle Eastern Moussaka

Salaam my new favourite 'bake'.