Pastitsio (Light)
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Why I Love This Recipe
I found this in a cookbook called "Light Cooking"
I love pastitsio but my grandfather's recipe is for such a huge amount and is really bad for you, so I love this because you get all the flavor of it but w/ less quantity and less fat.
of course it wasn't working well at first so i had to add a little more margarine - i put all my comments in [brackets]
Ingredients You'll Need
8 oz. uncooked elbow macaroni [I used fucilli spiral pasta]
½ cup cholesterol-free egg substitute
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¾ pound lean ground lamb, beef, or turkey [I used beef]
½ cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
¾ teaspoon dried mint leaves [I left this out because I don't like mint]
½ teaspoon dried oregano leaves
½ teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons reduced-calorie margarine [I used 2 tablespoons 2 tsp didn't seem like enough for 3 tbspns of flour]
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups skim milk
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
[recipe calls for a 9" square baking dish I didn't have one so i used two meatloaf-sized pans and it turned out OK]
Directions
Per serving according to recipe book: [doesn't account for the extra margarine I used]
calories = 280
Fat = 5g
Cholesterol = 31 mg
Sodium = 366 mg
Some steps can be done simultaneously to save time
1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt.
Drain and transfer to medium bowl; stir in egg substitute and nutmeg.
2. Lightly spray bottom of 9-inch square baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
Spread pasta mixture on bottom of baking dish. Set aside.
3. Preheat oven to 350 deg.F.
Cook ground beef, onion, and garlic in large nonstick skillet over medium heat until meat is no longer pink.
Stir in tomato sauce, mint, oregano, pepper, and cinnamon.
Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes; spread over pasta.
4. Melt margarine in small nonstick saucepan. Add flour. [add the flour VERY SLOWLY, tiny bit at a time.] Stir constantly for 1 minute. Whisk in milk.
Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 6 minutes; spread over meat mixture. Sprinkle with cheese.
Bake 30-40 minutes or until set.