Moussaka Style Shepards Pie

(A Quick(er) Moussaka Cheat) 

As with almost all things Mediterranean, I love Moussaka! Lamb (or beef) with eggplant, onions, potatoes, tomatoes, spices, all covered with a cheesy bechamel. Unfortunately, it takes me more than four hours, start to finish, and you would not believe the pots and pans.

I found this recipe in the New York Times, but, of course, I modified it. The result delivers the tastes I wanted with fewer pans and about 60% of the time.

Ingredients

3/4 pound ground lamb or beef

1/2 large onion, diced

1 can crushed tomatoes

2 medium baking potatoes, peeled and sliced to1/4 inch rounds

3 or 4 long Asian eggplants sliced to 1/4 inch rounds

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground clove

1/8 tsp. grated nutmeg

4 Tbs. butter

1/3 cup milk

Salt as needed

3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 cloves garlic minced

1/4 cup panko

Method

Using either a knife or a V-slicer, slice the eggplant in 1/4 inch rounds, spread on a sheet pan on parchment. Spray lightly with olive oil. Put in a 400 oven for approximately 13 minutes. check after 10 minutes. The picture shows the desired brown. Remove and set aside. (Note: If using standard eggplant, dice into 1/2 inch cubes.)

Peel and dice the potatoes. Cover with heavily salted water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to simmer and cook the potatoes until a fork easily pierces a chunk. Drain and put the potatoes back in t5he pan to steam for five minutes. Add the nutmeg, butter, 1/2 cup of the cheese, and the milk. Mash until creamy and smooth then set aside.

Brown the meat in olive oil. Add the diced onion and cook on medium until the onions soften. Add the garlic, the cinnamon and cloves. Season liberally with salt. Add the can of crushed tomatoes. Add the eggplant and cook on medium until the flavors meld. Adjust the salt and pepper. (You may need to adjust the cinnamon and clove, but do so in small steps.)

Spoon the meat and eggplant mixture into a 9 inch casserole. Spread the mashed potatoes over the top. (I used a doser - the kind of ice cream scoop that has a trigger- to layer the filling.) Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, as well as the panko. Bake at 400 until the top has browned and the filling is bubbling.  

Allow the casserole to rest 5 minutes and serve.