I love eggplants! Until a few years ago you couldn’t hear me say this sentence because of the simple reason that I didn’t eat eggplants, at all. “Eggplants in tahini is just like eating tahini, you won’t even taste them,” my better half would say “so why eat eggplants?” I’d answer “I’ll eat tahini.” Now, don’t get me wrong, I made many dishes with eggplants, such as baba ganoush, eggplant salad in garlic and lemon juice, cooked eggplants, roasted, fried, anyway you can think of. I just didn't eat them, not even a taste. And then, I started eating them, I can't even recall how and why, I can only remember that it was love at first bite. It was as if I had suppressed the fact that I had lost so many years before discovering this wonderful vegetable. Since then I have been trying to make up for all those years. I might have even gone a little too far when my young son said at dinner, “moussaka again? We already had it two days ago.”
Ingredients
* If you keep kosher you can replace the bechamel sauce with tomato sauce
3-4 large eggplant
2 lb ground beef
2 onions
4 garlic cloves
2 cups crushed tomatoes
2 TBS tomato paste
1 cup parsley
1 tsp paprika
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp cardamom
1-2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 cup dry red wine
2 TBS olive oil
Bechamel sauce
6 TBS butter
½ cup flour
2 ½ cups milk
¼ tsp nutmeg
1tsp salt
1 ½ cups pecorino cheese
3 egg yolks
Heat oven to 400 f. Wash eggplants and pat dry. Cut the edges and slice lengthwise to slices ⅓ inch thick. Place in one layer on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Brush with olive oil and roast for 30 minutes until golden.
Heat olive oil in a deep pan over medium high heat. Add onions and fry to golden. Add garlic and fry one more minute. Add ground beef and fry stirring frequently until color is changed to gray. Add all other ingredients and spices and mix well. Cook for 5-10 minutes until most liquid evaporates. Let cool.
Bechamel sauce
Heat butter in a deep saucepan. Add flour and whisk to combine. Add milk and whisk. Cook whisking often until very thick. Remove from stove and chill a little. Add cheese and stir to combine. Add egg yolks and whisk.
Reduce oven heat to 350 f. Place a layer of eggplants In a 9x13 baking pan. Pour meat sauce and spread evenly. Place another layer of eggplants on top of the meat. Spread the bechamel sauce over to cover. Bake for 45 minutes until sauce is golden. Let cool 20-30 minutes before serving.
