Moussaka Weather

Photo © Rob Jones

Sometimes I am guided by the weather when deciding what to make for tea (or ‘dinner’ for southern readers.). Or ‘supper’ for Londoners like me. AMM

As usual we had several seasons within one week on the mountain. Tricky!

A few days which were hotter than the Med, followed by the certain signs of autumn … the morning mists, the burgeoning hedgerows, the heavy dews, the fading ferns.

Moussaka seemed the right thing to make. I also find it a very pensive dish to prepare. Lots of stages which can be performed mindfully/mindlessly. And September is doubly pensive. Always feels like the start of a new year, time to reassess, plan and prepare for the cold days to come.

So .. even more reason for Moussaka.

The key I feel is in the preparation - and as with most things, I like to cook all the individual items first, so that by the time it goes into the oven, it’s being cooked for a second time. Give it a lovely ‘leftovers’ feel.

Slice an Aubergine and a Courgette lengthways, salt them and dab off the excess water after about 30 mins. Rinse them and then shallow fry in some oil untill they begin to brown.

Peel and slice some potatoes lengthways. Not too thick. Again, I like to sauté them in a pan to brown a little. Heavily season..

Brown off the mince, and add some garlic, onions, a little beef extract, cinnamon, bay and plenty of pepper.

Then layer a dish - starting with potatoes, then mince, then aubergine, then mince, then courgette and then mince.

Make a bechamel sauce … 100ml butter, 100g plain flour, 750 full-fat milk. Make a white sauce.

Whisk in three eggs, a little nutmeg and 50g of assorted cheese. I think adding a few different cheeses tastes better for some reason.

Spread the sauce of the top of the dish. Sprinkle on a little more of the cheeses and then bake the whole thing for 30 mins or so. Allow to cool and solidify a little before serving.

You should have more than enough to eat as leftovers the next day.

Compare and contrast with AMM’s Moussaka by all means.

I like autumn. I know AMM likes autumn too.

RJ