Sauteed Shrimp with Mediterranean Orzo
Here’s an easy and delicious entree—Sauteed Shrimp with Mediterranean Orzo Pasta with Citrus Cream Sauce. The shrimp can either be sauteed or grilled and the orzo pasta provides a creamy bed with robust Mediterranean flavors.
To start, pre-heat oven to 450 degrees to roast the vegetables. On a sheet pan, slice roma tomatoes in half and toss in olive oil, salt and pepper. On another sheet pan rub red peppers with olive oil salt and pepper. Place both in the oven and roast until slightly charred. When you remove the peppers, place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap for about 15 minutes so that the skins will peel off easily. Remove stems, seeds and julienne and dice peppers. Cool tomatoes, remove skins and rough chop. Next core and finely slice a fennel bulb and saute in a pan over medium heat until caramelized. To finish orzo, add diced peppers, chopped tomatoes, caramelized fennel, nicoise olives, capers, minced tarragon, basil and toss together with olive oil salt and pepper and set aside.
Peel, de-vein and butterfly shrimp but leave the tails on for presentation. Keep shrimp chilled until ready to use. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt liberally. Add orzo pasta and and cook until al dente, stirring frequently to keep the pasta from clumping. Strain pasta and immerse in an ice bath, strain again really well and place in a large bowl and toss lightly with olive oil.
For the citrus cream sauce, saute an onion in canola oil, add chopped garlic and roasted garlic and saute on low until onions are soft. Add heavy cream, and cook until cream has reduced and thickened slightly. Remove from heat, and blend until smooth. Finish with lemon zest, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste.
To plate, saute shrimp in olive oil on medium heat, with minced garlic, white wine and parsley for a few minutes—be careful not to over cook. In another saute pan, re-heat orzo pasta in a small amount of olive oil and toss in arugula to wilt at the last minute. Arrange shrimp on top of the orzo and drizzle with citrus cream sauce, fresh parsley and a squeeze of fresh lemon.Enjoy!
Asparagus Puree with Chive Oil
We have had absolutely beautiful weather in the Bay Area for the entire month of March. Everyday has been sunny with temperatures ranging from 70–75 degrees. Of course, now that Spring has arrived we have showers and cooler temperatures. But the crops need the rain, as well as our reservoir and so a couple a days of showers will do the region a lot of good.
So I thought that it would be a perfect day to make Asparagus Puree. Asparagus is in season, the stalks are tender, sweet and have a beautiful green “granny-smith apple” color with purple-tinged tips. A perfect soup for spring or early summer that can be served either hot or cold.
To start, dice leeks, onions and celery and saute in canola until soft. Once softened, add chopped garlic, fresh thyme, season with salt and pepper and deglaze with white wine. Reduce wine, add butter and dust surface with flour. Stir to combine all ingredients and add chicken stock to cover and a small amount of heavy cream. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil, add kosher salt (so that it tastes like seawater) and trim the bottom of the asparagus stalks to remove any tough stems. Cook for approximately 5 minutes until asparagus are tender but still retain their vibrant color. When finished, immediately immerse asparagus in an ice bath to stop the cooking. Drain the asparagus, rough chop and set aside.
To finish, pour chicken stock/cream mixture into a large container and blend with a beurre mixer or in a blender until combined. Add chopped asparagus and a small amount of fresh spinach leaves and blend again. Adjust consistency and seasonings by adding additional cream, butter, chicken stock, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Strain soup through a medium sized china cap or sieve to remove any fibers from the asparagus—the soup should have a smooth, creamy consistency. You can garnish with you choice of with fresh herbs, creme fraiche, truffle oil or rendered pancetta.
Baklava Ice Cream Napoleon
I never get an opportunity to make dessert at home or at the restaurant and so I was off today (but went into the restaurant anyway) to experiment with an idea I had for Baklava. Baklava is popular though out Greece, Turkey and the Middle East and consists of layered phyllo dough with chopped nuts, spices and a honey-lemon syrup. With my version, I wanted to layer the phyllo between layers Baklava ice cream and finish with Persian flavors using cardamom, rose petals and pistachios.
To start use any recipe for vanilla bean ice cream (crème anglaise) and process according to manufacturers instructions. Set ice cream in the freezer but keep soft enough so that you can fold in almond mixture. In a 350 degree oven toast a couple cups of sliced almonds with the skin on until golden brown. Set aside to cool. When completely cooled, rough chop and add a 1/2 a tablespoon of freshly ground cardamom and a tablespoon of cinnamon. On the stove mix one cup of sugar, a half of cup of water, a couple of tablespoons of honey, a tablespoon of corn syrup and cook until sugar and honey are dissolved. Remove from heat and add a small amount of cream. Mix really well and stir into almond mixture and set aside to cool. Remove ice cream from the freezer and soften if necessary. Fold in almond mixture and pour into a 1/2 sheet pan which has been lined with plastic wrap. Use an offset spatula to make sure the ice cream is level and place in the freezer until solid.
Next, melt some butter and unwrap phyllo dough. Brush about 8 sheets of phyllo dough with butter stacking each layer on top of the next. You will have a large 12x15 rectangle. Trim the edges off the phyllo and cut into 3-inch squares. Place phyllo squares on a large sheet pan lined with a silpat. Cover the squares with parchment paper and place another sheet pan on top. Bake phyllo in a 350-degree oven for about 20–25 minutes (or until golden brown) turning half way through cooking. Remove the top sheet plan and the parchment paper and let phyllo cool on the silpat.
Meanwhile, while the phyllo is cooking, you’ll need to make rose water syrup. I purchased dried rose petals from a Persian market and steeped them in hot water for about 15 minutes. Strain the rose petals and reserve the water. You’ll need about a cup. You can also purchase rose water in a bottle but it is clear in color. In a small sauce pan add about 1.5 cups of sugar and 1 cup of the rose infused water. Cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes until sugar is melted and has a syrup consistency. Next add orange zest and lime juice to taste. Set syrup aside to cool.
To finish, remove ice cream from freezer and cut into 3 inch squares (work quickly or the ice cream will melt). If the ice cream starts to melt after you’ve finished cutting, place squares back in the freezer to firm up before plating. Place a phyllo square on the plate and top with an ice cream square and repeat and top with final phyllo square. Pour rose water syrup on top of phyllo napoleon and drizzle around the plate. Top with rose petals, slivered pistachios and dust with powdered sugar.
Enjoy this beautiful dessert!
Pan Seared Salmon with Beet Infused Couscous
For todays special I made Pan Seared Salmon with Beet Infused Couscous, Sautéed Spinach and Whole Grain Mustard Cream Sauce. This dish is absolutely beautiful—the photo doesn’t do it justice. The colors are so vivid. The couscous is a bright fuchsia/ruby red and against the dark green spinach and white plate—the contrasts are just stunning. The flavors work really well together also. Since salmon has a robust flavor it holds up nicely against the earthiness of the beet couscous and the sharpness from the whole grain mustard cream sauce.
To start, wash the beets really well and cover with water in a medium size pot. Add, whole garlic cloves, thyme springs, bay leaf, lemon zest, a whole lemon halved, peppercorns and olive oil. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover pan tightly and cook until beets are soft (approximately 2 hours depending on the size of the beets). Remove beets from juice and set aside to cool. Strain beet juice and set aside. Once beets have cooled remove the skin and dice into large chunks and place in a blender. Add beet juice and blend until you have a smooth consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste. Strain beet puree through a chinois or fine strainer a couple of times to remove most of the fibers.
For the couscous, I like using pearl couscous, which is sometimes referred to as Israeli or Mediterranean couscous. The ratio of couscous to liquid for cooking is approximately one cup of couscous to two cups of liquid. In a large pan bring equal parts beet puree and chicken stock and/or water to a boil. Slowly stir in couscous and reduce to a simmer. Cover pan tightly and let simmer for about 15 minutes until mostly all of the liquid is absorbed. Remove couscous from heat and let sit an additional 10 minutes before stirring. Once finished, check for seasonings and add salt if needed. Set couscous aside.
Meanwhile, to make the whole grain mustard cream sauce, slice and sauté an onion in canola oil in a medium size pan. Once onion is softened, add minced garlic, roasted garlic and sauté for a couple of more minutes. Deglaze with white wine and reduce and then add heavy cream and a bay leaf. Bring cream mixture almost to a boil and then simmer for about 30 minutes until cream reduces and slightly thickens, stirring frequently. Remove bay leaf and pour cream mixture into a blender and blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste and stir in whole grain mustard. Set aside and keep warm.
To finish, heat a sauté pan to medium-high heat, add canola oil and salmon and sear salmon for about a minute. Flip salmon over and then finish cooking in a 400-degree oven until desired doneness. Sauté spinach in canola oil with minced garlic, white wine, salt and pepper. I had wanted to use beet greens with this dish but we didn’t have any at the restaurant—mixed braising greens would also work well. Reheat couscous in a sauté pan with a small amount of chicken stock or water and taste for seasonings. Spoon couscous onto the plate, and top with sautéed spinach, and seared salmon filet. Spoon cream sauce over salmon and drizzle around the plate. Finish with micro greens dressed in lemon vinaigrette and serve!
Dungeness Crab and Clam Linguine
On Friday we were really busy for lunch and so I wanted to make a really simple, but delicious special, and so I made Dungeness Crab and Clam Linguine with Parmesan Crostini.
To start, largely dice onion, fennel and celery in a large pot with canola oil. Once softened, deglaze with white wine and reduce and then add fish bones from any firm white fish such as halibut, sea bass or mahi-mahi. If you want to make a shellfish stock instead, you can add shrimp shells, clams and mussels in addition to the fish bones. Next add, black peppercorns, bay leaf, and whole lemons, sliced in half and cover with cold water. Bring to a simmer slowly and skim off any impurities that have risen to the surface and simmer for about an hour until flavorful. Strain stock through a chinois or fine strainer and chill until ready to use.
At the restaurant we make different flavored compound butters to use in finishing meats, fish, pasta or sauces. So for this dish, I made a fresh herb butter and added it to the fish stock for a creamy and flavorful sauce. To make the compound butter, set out a pound of unsalted butter to soften at room temperature. Finely dice shallots and garlic and place in a pan with white wine and reduce slowly until the wine has a syrup consistency and the shallots and garlic are caramelized and coated with the syrup. Set aside to cool. Next, finely chop, fresh tarragon, basil, thyme and parsley and add to the softened butter. Add the cooled shallots and garlic, salt and pepper to taste and mix together really well. You can either do this in a mixer with a paddle attachment or by hand using latex gloves (my preference). You can then form this butter into a cylinder or log using parchment paper or you can place in a container and spoon out for future use. The butter can be kept in the freezer for a couple of months if wrapped really well.
For the Parmesan crostini, thinly slice a baguette or any type of rustic bread. We use Italian filone bread at the restaurant, which is really crispy on the outside and has an uneven texture on the inside so that all the flavors are absorbed throughout the bread. Brush both sides of the bread with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. You can also rub the bread with a fresh garlic clove for more flavor. Place crostini on a sheet pan and bake in a 350-degree oven for about 10–12 minutes until somewhat crusty (turning over half way through cooking). Sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan and minced flat leaf parsley and bake until cheese has melted.
To complete the dish, ladle some fish stock into a sauté pan, along white wine and minced garlic and reduce for a few minutes. Next add the fresh herb butter, along with linguine noodles (previously cooked to al-dente). Toss in shredded dungeness crab and minced clams, parsley, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Top with the parmesan crostini and serve!
Chicken Apple Sausage Sandwich
I really like making sandwiches. I like the fact that you can take several simple ingredients and place them between two pieces of bread and come up with a delicious meal. I remember when I lived in Maryland there was a sandwich shop that had over 200 different sandwiches on their menu. You would spend your entire lunch reviewing the menu and then taking the food to go. Thinking back, I wonder how many of those sandwiches were truly unique combinations and how different they would be today based on the availability of ingredients and how much the food scene has changed since the early 1980s.
For todays special I made a Chicken Apple Sausage Sandwich with Caramelized Onions, Red and Yellow Peppers, Fontina Cheese and Whole Grain Mustard Aioli on Ciabatta Roll. The sausage has smoky sweet undertones and is balanced nicely by the tangy whole grain mustard aioli.
To start, I like making my own aioli (mayonnaise) but you can use a good store bought brand instead. To make the aioli combine egg yokes, champagne vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a food processor and blend. Slowly drizzle in canola oil until thick and emulsified. If the aioli becomes too thick you can always thin out by adding a little water and continue blending. Taste and readjust seasonings if necessary. At this point, you can flavor the aioli with a number of different ingredients like roasted red peppers, basil, oregano, tarragon, chipotle, more garlic, or whole grain mustard—the list is endless!
Next, julienne red and yellow peppers and yellow onions and sauté on medium-high heat in canola oil until caramelized and season with salt and pepper. Remove the casings from the sausage and slice in half so that the sausage will lie flat on a grill or in a sauté pan and cook until it starts to curl and is completely heated through. Top with either fontina or Swiss cheese and continue cooking until cheese is melted. I like using ciabatta bread or rolls for sandwiches. It’s thin but has great texture—it’s crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. Spread a generous amount of the whole grain must aioli on the bread and top with sausage and pile on the other ingredients. Serve with either fries or a field greens salad dressed with sherry vinaigrette and you’ve got a quick and delicious meal!
Roasted Chicken with Salsa Verde
I know it’s been a long time since I’ve updated my blog. I create specials everyday but I just haven’t had an opportunity to write. Hopefully, I’ll make up for lost time in the next couple of weeks.
For today’s special I made Pan Roasted Chicken with Spanish Chorizo Potato Puree, Sauteed Spinach with Salsa Verde and Lemon Olive Oil Essence.
At the restaurant, we serve a half of chicken, which includes the breast meat as well as the thigh and leg, but we bone the leg and leave the skin on while roasting. The skin keeps the meat moist, imparts a richer flavor and offers both light and dark meat.
To make the Spanish Chorizo potato puree, peel and largely dice Yukon gold potatoes and add to cold water, along with plenty of salt. Bring potatoes to a boil and cook until fork tender. Drain potatoes really well and pass through a food mill. Add roasted garlic puree, hot heavy cream, melted butter, salt and pepper to taste and set in ban marie to keep warm. Meanwhile, remove the casings from Spanish Chorizo (you can also use Mexican Chorizo) and dice and cook slowly until the fat is rendered. Strain the chorizo, reserving the fat in a separate container, keep warm and set aside.
The difference between Spanish Chorizo and Mexican Chorizo is that Spanish chorizo uses smoked pork, while Mexican Chorizo uses fresh pork. Both are highly seasoned with garlic, chili powder and other seasonings and are piped into pork casings. Mexican Chorizo crumbles easily and can be cooked to a very fine consistency, while Spanish Chorizo is usually diced or sliced and remains a prominent element in the dish. When I cook chorizo or any type of sausage I always remove the casings prior to cooking.
To make the Salsa Verde, bring a pot of water to a rapid boil and add lots of salt. Remove the leaves from bunches of parsley, basil and cilantro and add the leaves to the boiling water for about one minute. Strain and immediately immerse into an ice bath until cool and then strain again. Meanwhile, either pan roast or oven roast sliced almonds until fragrant and set aside to cool. In a blender or food processor add herbs, roasted almonds, chopped garlic, chopped shallots, crushed pepper flakes, freshly ground cumin, and a small amount of water and blend until somewhat smooth. Scrape down the sides and while the he machine is running, slowing add a combination of extra virgin olive oil and canola oil and finish with lemon juice, lime juice, champagne vinegar, honey and salt and pepper to taste.
To roast the chicken, pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees. Season chicken with salt and pepper and pan-sear in a hot saute pan with canola oil for approximately 2–3 minutes until golden in color. Turn chicken over and cook for another minute and then place in the oven for about 10 minutes until juices run clear (turning once during cooking). Re-heat the potato puree in a saute pan with a small amount of chorizo oil and add rendered diced chorizo and mix thoroughly. Meanwhile, saute fresh spinach with a small amount of olive oil, chopped garlic, salt and pepper.
To finish, spoon chorizo potato puree on the plate and top with sauteed spinach. Place roasted chicken on top and spoon the salsa verde over the chicken. Finish with a drizzle of lemon olive oil essence, (which is olive oil steeped with lemon zest) and sprinkle with chopped parsley and chervil. Enjoy!!
New England Clam Chowder
I’ve tasted some really good clam chowders and some really, really bad clam chowders in my lifetime. I’m not claiming to be a clam chowder aficionado, but I did grow up on the east coast (not in New England), and my husband and I have attended practically every clam chowder cook-off in our area over the years.
Most chowders that I’ve tasted are so thick with roux that the chowder has no consistency or taste. It’s almost like eating oatmeal or cream of wheat and all the important flavors and textures get lost in all of the glue. My definition of clam chowder is a “creamy and somewhat chunky soup” and “soup” is the key word here. The chowder should be brothy and spill off your spoon like a soup instead of dropping into a big blob in your bowl. I can only imagine all the regional chowder battles that have been raging for the past 200 years about the best ingredients to use and the proper consistency for making clam chowder, and so I thought that I would add my thoughts as well.
You can either steam and shuck fresh clams and make a clam broth from scratch or you can purchase high quality canned minced clams in their juice. I’ve made clam chowder with both fresh and canned and I can honestly tell you that I can’t really tell the difference. Of course, having baby littleneck clams as a garnish in the soup looks really nice. One of the most important ingredients in the chowder is using applewood-smoked bacon. It imparts an intense sweet smoky flavor that compliments the clams, and the consistency of the bacon adds texture to the soup. I recommend that you purchase a small slab of applewood-smoked bacon and dice it yourself instead of purchasing pre-sliced. If you can’t find applewood smoked bacon than use salt pork or thick sliced hickory smoked bacon.
To start, heat canola oil in a large stockpot. Add finely diced applewood smoked bacon and render the fat and cook until golden brown. Next add medium sized diced onions, celery, minced garlic, salt and pepper and cook for about five minutes until flavors are released. Add some butter (the base for a roux) and stir until the butter melts and coats the vegetables evenly. At this point, sprinkle a nice dusting of flour over the vegetables and stir to combine. The vegetables should be coated with the flour but not so much that you have a thick paste. If you add too much flour then you can always add more liquid later to correct the consistency.
While the vegetables are simmering, strain the liquid from the clams and add the clam broth to the roux mixture. Reserve the clams (either chopped or whole to add later). Stir mixture to combine and then add chopped thyme and parsley. Next add cream and half and half. I prefer using three parts half and half to one part cream. Using cream stabilizes the half and half so that it doesn’t break under high heat. After you add the liquids, bring it up to a simmer and then add medium diced yukon gold or white potatoes, a few splashes of tabasco and worcestershire sauce and cook until potatoes are tender, approximately 30 minutes. Finally, add your minced or whole clams and salt and pepper to taste. I like to finish the chowder by stiring in pale dry sherry to taste. Garnish with minced parsley and serve with warm crusty bread.
Chowder is a really versatile soup. You can substitute the clams with crabmeat, lobster or any type of firm textured fish. Since I grew up in Maryland we would always add Old Bay seasoning to our chowders. A little old bay goes a long way but it adds a nice spice to the soup. You can avoid adding seafood all together and make potato-corn chowder or potato-curry chowder. One of my favorite chowders is to make salmon-corn chowder. The salmon and applewood-smoked bacon go really well together and the coral color of the salmon looks really great against the cream base of the soup.
Holidays and The Restaurant Business
We’ve been really busy at the restaurant the past couple of weeks for both dinner and lunch service. I feel really bad for the executive chef and sous chefs because they have been working literally 10–12+ hour days for the past two weeks without hardly any time off. However, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel—only four days to go!!
During this time of year it always amazes me how much prep is involved for all the parties and banquets that are held at the restaurant. We may have three different menus going at the same time serving several different parties ranging is size from 15 people to 200 people. It takes a lot of planning, coordination, teamwork, commitment, and hard work from all of the employees to pull it off so that the customer has an enjoyable experience and chooses to dine at the restaurant again. It’s pretty amazing actually, when it all comes together, and so my hat goes off to the chefs for their vision and leadership, the line cooks, pastry cook, prep cooks and dishwashers for their commitment and teamwork, and to all of management and the front of the house employees who interact directly with the customers and make their dining experience a very pleasant one.
Below is a photo of the line this morning while I was prepping for lunch service. I was using practically every burner and we have a lot of them. Also, all of the burners in the back prep area were being utilized, as well as the ovens. And it starts all over again tomorrow morning…we have several large parties for lunch!!
Moussaka
I love comfort food, especially when it’s cold outside and there is nothing more comforting than making and eating Moussaka. It has bold flavors with hints of cinnamon and nutmeg and is rich and creamy. Preparing moussaka takes time, but it is fun to make and the results are so worth the effort!
A little background on the origin Moussaka It is a traditional aubergine (eggplant) dish from the Balkans and the Middle East, but it mostly associated with Greece and Turkey. The Greek version, which is best known outside the region, consists of layers of ground minced lamb, tomato sauce, sliced eggplant and then topped with a cheese-flavored béchamel sauce (probably introduced by Nikos Tselementes in the 1920’s) and baked until golden brown. Just as an aside note, Tselementes was a well-known professional chef from the Greek island of Sifnos, who created the moussaka that most of us know today. He is credited with extending the traditional ingredients of mincemeat and aubergines and combining them with the béchamel topping.
Moussaka made in Greece, uses a varietal eggplant called langada which is smaller than many other varieties and has a slender pear-shaped fruit. It is believed by Greeks that moussaka only tastes right if prepared with the langada eggplant, which gives it a flavor that is characteristic to Greek cuisine. My version actually combines flavors and textures from the entire region. In addition to the eggplant, I also use potatoes, which is found in moussaka recipes from countries like Bulgaria, Bosnia, Croatia and Macedonia.
To start, slice the eggplant using a mandolin to 1/8 -1/4 inch in thickness. Place eggplant slices on a rack over a sheet tray and sprinkle with salt. Let eggplant sit for about 30 minutes to remove excess liquid (eggplants contain 92% water content) and any bitterness. Rinse eggplant of any salt and pat dry with a paper towel. Toss eggplant slices in Greek olive oil, salt and pepper and roast in a 400-degree oven until slightly charred and soft. Meanwhile, slice Yukon gold potatoes or white potatoes to the same thickness as the eggplant and toss in olive oil and roast in the oven until lightly browned and somewhat soft. Let both the potatoes and eggplant cool on the sheet trays until ready to assemble.
To make the tomato sauce, finely dice onion and garlic and sauté in olive oil until softened. Add tomato paste and deglaze the pan with red wine. Reduce the wine, and add chopped fresh thyme and dried Greek oregano. (If you can’t find dried Greek oregano then use fresh chopped oregano instead.) Then add canned crushed roma tomatoes with puree, bay leaf, and water. Simmer for about 45 minutes until thick and flavorful. Meanwhile, finely dice another onion and sauté in olive oil until soft, add chopped garlic, and fresh ground chuck or a combination of lamb and chuck. Add chopped fresh thyme, dried Greek oregano, cinnamon and salt and pepper to taste. Cook mixture until the meat is finely minced and the flavors are combined. Add mixture to a large bowl and stir in the tomato sauce and let cool to almost room temperature. When mixture is cool, add freshly ground seasoned breadcrumbs and egg whites. (The breadcrumbs and egg whites act as a binder to the mixture and also soak up any additional moisture from the eggplant.) Taste again and re-season if necessary. You should definitely taste the cinnamon.
To assemble the moussaka, pour a small amount of olive oil in a casserole dish and distribute evenly along the bottom and sides. Place a layer of the roasted potatoes (slightly overlapping) on the bottom. Next spoon an even layer of the tomato sauce-meat mixture over potatoes and then a layer of roasted eggplant slices, followed by a final layer of the tomato sauce-meat mixture. Make sure surface is smooth and even and set aside.
Finally, make the béchamel sauce by melting butter in a saucepan; stir in flour to make a roux and then add warmed milk. Stir over low heat for about 5 minutes until sauce thickens. It should be really thick and creamy. Do not add any additional cream or it will be too thin. Add a small amount of lemon juice, freshly ground nutmeg, and grated Greek cheese. I like using a combination of Kefalotyri and Manouri cheeses. If you can’t find Kefalotyri or Manouri then you can substitute Parmesan and Goat cheese instead and get similar results with taste and texture. Once cheeses are melted, add salt and white pepper to taste and spoon mixture evenly over casserole. Cook in a 375-degree oven for about 50 minutes until golden brown and bubbly. Remove from the oven, tent with foil and let sit for about 30 minutes until firm enough to cut into rounds or squares. Re-heat if necessary after cutting.
I serve my version of moussaka with a brown sauce made by reducing veal stock, shallots, thyme and a small amount of tomato paste until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. I then strain the sauce through a fine strainer and season with salt and pepper and set aside. I also drizzle the plate with oregano oil for color. To make oregano oil, place a bunch of oregano in salted boiling water for about 30 seconds, then immediately immerse into ice water. Once cool, remove the leaves from the stems and add to a blender along with olive oil, canola oil, minced garlic, salt and pepper to taste and blend until smooth. Top moussaka with shaved Kefalotryi cheese, chevril for color and serve!
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