Mary's Pastistio (Rice & Pasta Dishes)

Member Name: marymoose

Product:	Rice & Pasta Dishes
Date:	09/01/08 (408 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A fantastic alternative to lasagne

Disadvantages: Absolutely none

*Mary's Pastistio*

My reviews generally start with a bit of background information. If you are a person who doesn't like reviews which have information before the actual product (which might possibly not be considered relevant), then I suggest you skip straight to the recipe and the food!


-----Background info-----

Pastistio is a Greek version of lasagne. Now, I LOVE lasagne...it was the first thing I ever really cooked on my own. Before going to university I had never cooked (aside from bacon on the grill!), but hubby gradually got me into it - he was brought up in his parent's hotel you see. As a new cook, pasta dishes are often a simple solution, as they are simple and taste fantastic!

I used to use Dolmio Sauces for bolognaise and lasagne, and then moved on to using Ragu (the brand) sauces for the ragu sauce - at the time these did seem to taste pretty good especially with the special varieties of the sauces (like extra garlic)! However, as I grew more confident, I started making it all myself (although not the actual pasta except on very special occasions) - after all the sauce is essentially just a tin of tomatoes with various bits and pieces added!

Anyway, lasagne quickly became my speciality, and I have got it down to a fine art. I would be surprised if I could find anyone who didn't like my lasagne - I even did a dairy-free version for my dairy-free friend which was very successful, and my chicken lasagne is very nice. It's also really nice using lamb mince. Although I have never tried, I am sure that my vegetarian pasta would also be fantastic! Sorry, I'm getting a bit carried away with my gloating now!

Keen to broaden my pasta horizons, I bought a pasta book last year with over 500 recipes in it, despite already having an abundance of recipe books (it was from the BookPeople and was a bargain!) I was very tempted by the recipe for pastistio. I always find when looking for recipes that there always seems to be one vital ingredient which we don't have, and the local corner shop is just not going to stock. Therefore, pastistio was one of those few dishes which I could actually make without a special trip to Tesco!

The quantities in my pasta book are for 4-6, but I am sure these are wrong as it suggests 200g pasta between 4-6 people - that can't be right, as there would just not be enough. So, over the course of making the pastistio on several occasions and a bit of experimentation, I have developed my own recipe. Quantities can of course vary according to individual taste - this is based upon what is right for me and hubby!


-----The Recipe-----

Serves 2 - an ideal pig out meal for 2 on a Friday night! If you want it for more people, then it's not hard to work out!

*Equipment you will need*

- An oven would be useful - heat to Gas Mark 5, 190°C, or 375°F
- A hob! (Ok, I'm being silly now...)
- Pan for Pasta
- Pan for sauce
- Frying pan for meat and everything else!
- Cheese grater
- Knife (well...that find of goes without saying doesn't it?)
- 2 smallish ovenproof dishes - I like to do this dish as separate ones for each of us. However, for more people a big dish (fairly shallow) would probably be easier.

*Ingredients & preparation*

Please bear with me, I go between metric, imperial, and my own made up measurements! At the end of the day be experimental and find what suits you!!!
- 250g lean beef mince - this can work equally well with the same amount of lamb mince as a nice variation.
- 1 medium onion - chopped depending on how big you like bits of onion - recipes suggest fine, I go for less fine because I'm not great at chopping, and don't want to include one of my fingers!
- 1 clove garlic - crushed or chopped finely
- ½ pint beef stock (I use Bisto mmmmm), or lamb stock if using lamb
- 2 tbsp tomato puree
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp mint (recipes suggest fresh, but dried has always worked fine for me) - this is what initially gave me the idea of trying the recipe with lamb instead of beef.
- Strong flavoured cheese - enough to make the white sauce cheesy, and to cover the pasta - I generally use about a quarter to a third of a block of cheese (yes, I know that depends on the size of the block - just use your common sense!)
- A pint of milk (you could use a combination of milk and natural yoghurt, or add a bit of cream too) - as anyone who makes white sauce will know, quantities are never exact.
- 1/3 Cup Plain flour (5 tbsp)
- 40g Butter
- 200g macaroni (other pasta shells will do, but I think it's nicest with macaroni)
- Oil for cooking
- Salt and pepper to taste

How to make:
1. Cook the pasta in lightly salted boiling water in the pasta pan until it is tender (I hope I assume rightly that people can cook pasta, or follow the specific instructions on their pasta packets) - I usually add a dash of olive oil to stop it sticking, and a pinch of salt.
2. Drain pasta, rinse in cold water, drain again and put aside. Meanwhile heat the oven.
3. In the frying pan sauté the onions and garlic for about 5 minutes until soft. Add the mince and cook until browned (5-10 minutes, depending on what else you're doing at the time!)
4. Add the stock, tomato puree, mint, spices and seasoning. Simmer for about 10-15 minutes. (Note, if you fancy some red wine, now's the time to use the excuse to open a bottle, put a small dash into the pan, and a LARGE dash into a wine glass!)
5. While the meat mixture is simmering, put the butter into the saucepan (that is the Pan for Sauce (!) which hasn't yet been used), and melt under a low heat. Add the flour, stir and cook for 1 minute. Add the milk (and yoghurt if using) gradually, bringing up to the boil. When it has boiled, turn the heat down and simmer, and add a load of cheese - this all depends on how cheesy you would like your macaroni to be!
6. Add the pasta to the pan with the sauce in (you could add the sauce to the pasta pan, but it makes washing up less messy this was if like me you have no room in your kitchen for a dishwasher!) and mix well.
7. Spread half of the pasta mixture over the bottom of an ovenproof dish. Put the meat mixture on top of this, and then the rest of the pasta mixture. Add the remaining to the top.
8. Cover the pasta mixture with the rest of the cheese.
9. Cook on Gas Mark 5, 190°C, or 375°F for about 30 minutes.

Serve with:
This can be eaten either on its own, or with a nice green salad, and if you're feeling extra hungry then a nice garlic baguette as well! YUM!

Additional notes:
I see no reason why this can't be used as a vegetarian recipe, using Quorn mince and vegetable stock. If you do try this, please let me know how it turns out!

Enjoy!!!

Also published on Ciao as marymoose99.

Summary: Yummy!