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Pastitsio

April 8, 2020 | Budget Friendly, Freezable Meals, Make-ahead Meals, Red meat, Vegetarian

A healthier and lighter take on a Greek classic Pastitsio. Instead of a rich cheesy sauce, it’s topped with a much lighter blend of yoghurt, tahini and parmesan cheese. 

This is my healthy take on a Greek classic, Pastitsio. Instead of a rich cheesy sauce, it’s topped with a much lighter blend of yoghurt, tahini and parmesan cheese.  It can also be made with beef mince if you prefer, but personally prefer to use lamb mince.

Take a look at the variations (below the main recipe) for suggestions to alter the recipe to suit any specific dietary requirements.

Pastitsio

Prep 20 minutes
Cook 40 minutes
Serves: 6
A healthier and lighter take on a Greek classic Pastitsio. Instead of a rich cheesy sauce, it’s topped with a much lighter blend of yoghurt, tahini and parmesan cheese. 
5 from 3 votes
A healthier and lighter take on a Greek classic Pastitsio. Instead of a rich cheesy sauce, it’s topped with a much lighter blend of yoghurt, tahini and parmesan cheese. 

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp olive oil - extra virgin
  • 1 red onion/s - diced
  • 4 clove/s garlic - diced
  • 600 g lamb mince
  • 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp mixed spice
  • 1 bay leaf/s
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 60 ml red wine
  • 1 zucchini/s - diced into 1 cm pieces
  • 2 carrot/s - diced into 1 cm pieces
  • 700 g tomato passata (puree)
  • 125 ml chicken stock or bone broth
  • 1 tsp sea salt - or to taste
  • Ground black pepper - to taste
  • 30 g baby spinach - chopped (1 cup)
  • 250 g rice quinoa penne pasta (or any pasta that suits)

Topping

  • 1 clove/s garlic
  • 500 g full-fat natural yoghurt - or greek yoghurt (2 cups)
  • 2 tbsp hulled tahini 
  • 1 free-range or organic egg/s
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • Ground black pepper
  • 25 g parmesan cheese - grated (¼ cup)
  • 2 tbsp pinenuts
  • ¼ bunch/s fresh parsley leaves - approx. 1 handful, finely chopped

Method

  • Heat the olive oil over a medium heat and add the onion. Sauté for a couple of minutes.
  • Add the garlic and lamb mince, sauté to brown the mince.
  • Add the cinnamon, mixed spice, bay leaf and oregano and cook for a minute until you smell their fragrance.
  • Turn the heat up to high and add the red wine (it should sizzle and reduce quickly and remove the alcohol).
  • Reduce the heat and add the tomato passata, broth, zucchini, carrots and seasoning.
  • Cover and simmer with the lid ajar for 15-20 minutes.
  • Pre-heat you oven to 180°C/ 350°F fan-forced.
  • While the sauce is simmering, boil the penne.
  • Once it is almost cooked, drain and rinse the pasta and mix in with the sauce and the baby spinach.
  • Place into an oven proof serving dish.
  • In a food processor or by hand, grate cheese and set aside.
  • Then blend the garlic, yoghurt, tahini, sea salt, pepper and egg.
  • Pour this over the sauce/ pasta mix, top with the grated parmesan and pine nuts.
  • Bake for 10-15 mins or until the cheese is melted and the top is browned.

Serve

  • Sprinkle with the chopped parsley leaves and serve with a green, leafy salad.

Thermomix

  • I chop the onion and garlic in the TMX but cook it all in a pan. I find it cooks better that way, not as sloppy as cooking in the TMX. I then use it to grate the cheese and make the topping sauce.

Store

  • Store in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer.

Make ahead

  • Re-heat in a low oven until just hot.

Variations

Onion and garlic-free

Replace the onion with a small fennel bulb and the garlic a pinch of chilli flakes.

Vegetarian

Replace the mince with 2 cans of brown lentils (drained and rinsed). Choose vegetable broth. 

Nut-free

Omit the pine nuts. 

Wine free

Replace the wine with broth or stock (and a tsp of vinegar).

Different vegetables

Feel free to switch up the veggies to suit your supplies and tastes.
 
 

I'd love to hear how you like this recipe. Post a comment below and rate this recipe, thanks so much. 

Course: Main Course
Author: Georgia Harding

Share the goodness!

Category: Budget Friendly, Freezable Meals, Make-ahead Meals, Red meat, Vegetarian Tags: coconutfree, cornfree, garlicfree, gluten free, glutenfree, lamb, legumefree, lowfructose, mince, nutfree, onionfree, pasta, seafoodfree, sesamefree, soyfree, thermomix, vegetarian, wheatfree, yeastfree

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11 Comments

Post a comment
  1. Rebecca Cavanagh says

    Just cooked this recipe and it was delicious. Winning again, thank you! x

    May 7, 2020
    Reply
    • Georgia Harding says

      So glad you loved it Rebecca G x

      May 8, 2020
      Reply
  2. Kate Dusting says

    5 stars
    Amazing!! Super big hit in our house with all 3 kids and adults which doesn’t happen very often! Ultimate comfort food. Thank you!!!

    June 2, 2020
    Reply
    • Georgia Harding says

      Yay, perfect Kate. So glad it was a winner and cheers for the 5🌟s too G x

      June 5, 2020
      Reply
  3. Ruth K says

    5 stars
    This has become a firm favourite in our house – guests, kids home… or just hubby and me with lots of leftovers to freeze or have as lunches. Easy, delicious and veg flexible is always a hit with me 🙂

    November 4, 2020
    Reply
    • Georgia Harding says

      So glad you love it Ruth, it’s the same in my house, a nice change from bolognese and not as fussy as lasagne G x

      November 9, 2020
      Reply
  4. Desiree Mou says

    Wanted to make this tomorrow and I’m wondering what is meant by ‘mixed spice’? Im trying to get a sense of what flavours would go with oregano and cinnamon and I’m just not sure. Thanks!

    November 11, 2020
    Reply
    • Georgia Harding says

      Desiree it’s a premix blend of spices, generally cinnamon, coriander seed, caraway, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, allspice (you find it in all major supermarkets). It’s quite important to this traditional dish G x

      November 14, 2020
      Reply
  5. Kirsty Armstrong says

    Hi Georgia, could I leave out the red wine or sub it? We don’t drink wine in our house so never have it on hand.

    November 26, 2020
    Reply
    • Kirsty Armstrong says

      Never mind I just read the variations. Silly me!

      November 26, 2020
      Reply
      • Georgia Harding says

        No worries, glad you found it, I generally have a wine free variation in my recipes G x

        November 30, 2020
        Reply

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