Moussaka

Ingredients

• 2 Eggplants
• Salt
• 5 tbsp olive oil
• 2 onions
• 500 g tomatoes
• 500 g ground beef
• 250 ml dry white wine
• 1 tsp sugar
• 0.5 tsp cinnamon
• pepper (ground)
• 1 tsp Dried oregano
• 3 sprigs parsley
• 4 tbsp sunflower seeds
• 80 g breadcrumbs
• 80 g grated Graviera cheese (or Gruyère)
• 30 g Butter
• 3 tbsp wheat flour type 550
• 500 ml milk (3.5% fat)
• nutmeg freshly grated
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 3 eggs
• 150 g soft sheep cheese
• mint for garnish

Instructions

1. 1.

   Wash eggplants and slice lengthwise into about 0.5 cm thick slices. Let them soak in salted water for ~20 minutes, then drain and pat dry. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large non-stick pan over high heat; fry the eggplant slices until golden brown on all sides. Drain on paper towels.

2. 2.

   Peel and dice onions. Rinse tomatoes with hot water, peel, remove stems, and cube. Sauté onions in 3 tbsp oil until translucent. Add ground beef, break it up, and cook over high heat until juices evaporate. Stir in tomatoes, white wine, salt, sugar, cinnamon, and pepper. Cover and simmer for about 5 minutes on medium heat. Mix finely chopped parsley, sunflower seeds, and oregano into the meat; cook another 5 minutes, then let cool.

3. 3.

   Mix breadcrumbs (except 2 tbsp) and half of the grated cheese into the meat mixture. In a saucepan melt butter, stir in flour, and briefly sauté. Gradually whisk in milk and bring to a boil. Simmer gently for 5 minutes while stirring. Season with salt, pepper, nutmeg, and lemon juice; let cool slightly. Beat two eggs and fold into the sauce along with the remaining cheese (except 2 tbsp).

4. 4.

   Grease a baking dish if needed. Mix one egg into the meat mixture. Spread half of the eggplant slices in the dish. Spread the meat over them, then pour half of the white sauce on top. Layer the remaining eggplant and spread the rest of the sauce. Crumble soft sheep cheese over everything.

5. 5.

   Sprinkle the remaining cheese and breadcrumbs on top. Bake in a preheated oven at 200 °C (180 °C fan) for about 1 hour. Garnish with parsley before serving.