MOUSSAKA This is a lasagna-like casserole which uses eggplant. Meat is optional. The recipe has 4 sub-parts which are combined together and baked. Vegetable Marinade: olive oil, balsamic vinegar, oregano, red pepper flakes (1/4t. max!) Combine all ingredients and use as vegetable marinade or brush on. Eggplant 2-3 large eggplants Olive oil Start grill to preheating (medium heat). Slice the eggplants 1/2-5/8" thick. Grill in olive oil, not allowing bottom side to blacken or become dry. After turning slices, brush the top sides with marinade, then don't turn slices any more. When the eggplant slices are tender and not overcooked, remove them to cool and drain. Continue until all eggplant slices are cooked. These can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container with some marinade. NOTE: The marinade is optional and we often omit it altogether. Rice Filling 1¼ cups short-grain brown rice 2½ cups water 1 can chopped peeled tomatoes 1 red bell pepper, roasted, seeded, peeled & diced (optional) 1 large onion, chopped 3 tablespoons chopped parsley 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced (or crushed) Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper ¼ cup sunflower seeds 1/3 cup pine nuts 3/4 cup dried currants ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese Wash the rice well, add water, bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the tomatoes, onion, parsley, garlic, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally. When the mixture is mostly dry, remove from heat and thoroughly stir in the seeds, nuts, currants, and grated cheese. Béchamel Sauce 3/4 cups wholewheat pastry flour 4 tablespoons butter 2 cups warm milk 2 eggs, lightly beaten Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste 6 oz. grated hard cheese, grated (can be parmesan) Mix flour and butter in a large pan over medium heat, whisk until smooth or at least as smooth as you can get it. (Try to at least wet all the flour!) Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly. The sauce should be thick, but not solid (add a little milk if it gets too thick). Remove from heat and add eggs, salt, pepper and cheese. Mix well and use immediately. Moussaka Arrange eggplant slices to form a layer in a greased lasagne pan. Add the rice mixture and spread to form another layer. If you made machaca then use it to make another layer. Make another layer with eggplant slices. Spread the béchamel sauce on top and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the béchamel sauce turns a golden brown. Let dish sit for 20 minutes before cutting to serve. Machaca (Peppery String Beef) 1.5-2 pounds beef, cut into chunks (can be frozen) 2-3 cloves garlic 1/4 cup jalapeno peppers 1 can beef stock Dump the meat into the crock pot in one chunk (or dump in the fresh meat if you didn't freeze it). Peel and press in 2-3 cloves of garlic. Add 1/4 cup of sliced cocktail jalapenos (or cut in 1-2 jalapeno peppers) or add other peppers. Add beef stock. Simmer the meat in the crock pot for a minimum of 7 hours (somewhat less if meat wasn't frozen to start with). Then remove the crock pan to the stovetop, and reduce the mixture over high heat until most of the liquid has gone into the meat. Then shred the meat with a fork. NOTE: We tried making this with fried potatoes instead of eggplant. Here's what we did: 9 medium potatoes, peeled some oil I cut the potatoes lengthwise into slices about 3/8" thick, then put them in a microwave oven bowl and nuked them for 8 minutes, then fried them on the griddle until light brown on both sides. Then we substituted them for eggplant in the above recipe. Conclusion: the fried potatoes are yummy, but the moussaka isn't quite right. I thought it needed meat and more seasonings; Karen thought it might work just with more salt. We both agreed the ratio of potato to filling was too high, next time cut it to 4-5 medium potatoes.