Moussaka: Meat & Vegetarian Version. My Grandma makes moussaka with ground beef, but you can substitute black beans instead. I’ve made the black bean version many times for my vegetarian friends and they love it. Moussaka is hearty and great to make ahead of time. Prep it on a weekend and place it in the fridge until you’re ready to cook it in the oven. It’s big enough for leftovers or to bring to a party. I enjoy it with a side salad.
Moussaka: Meat & Vegetarian Version
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
This is my Grandma’s version of Moussaka. It’s hearty and great to make ahead of time. You can prep it all and place it in the fridge until you’re ready to cook it in the oven. And it’s a big enough dish to have for leftovers. I enjoyed it with a side salad!
Author: Sarah Koszyk adapted from Grandma Zaninovich
Recipe type: Dinner, Casserole
Cuisine: Croatian, American
Serves: 8
Ingredients
- Olive oil spray (Misto)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 onions, chopped
- 2 lbs 96% ground beef OR 2 lbs ground turkey OR 2 cans black beans (drained & rinsed) (vegetarian version)
- 24 oz tomato puree
- 1 cup beef stock OR 1 cup vegetable stock (vegetarian version)
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ cup chopped mint
- ½ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
- Sea salt & ground cracked pepper to taste
- 3 eggplants, thinly sliced
- 1 ½ cups grated mozzarella (lite version)
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees bake.
- In a large pan, spray with the Misto and cook the garlic and onions for 4 minutes.
- Add the meat or beans and cook for another 5 minutes (or until the meat is browned).
- Add the tomatoes, stock, cinnamon, mint, parsley, salt, and pepper and cook on medium-low heat for about 20 minutes.
- While this is cooking, put the eggplants in a dish with a little water and place in the microwave. Heat on high for 8 minutes so they are cooked.
- TIP: microwave alternative: cook the eggplant in batches on the stove top in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat so the eggplants are cooked on both sides.
- In a glass Pyrex (9x13in), layer the eggplant, meat/bean sauce, and cheese on top.
- Add a second layer of the eggplant, meat/bean sauce, and cheese on top.
- Cook in the oven for 35 minutes.
- This is fantastic served with crusty bread and a side salad.
Nutrition Information
Serving size: 1.5 cups Calories: 287 Fat: 9 Saturated fat: 4.3 Carbohydrates: 14 Sugar: 6.5 Sodium: 472.3 Fiber: 3.9 Protein: 37.6 Cholesterol: 82.9
For more recipes by my Grandma, check out
8 Favorite Recipes from my Mom & Grandma
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I didn’t catch whether or not you mitoenn soy sauce contains in the thread so if this is redundant I apologize. Please make sure to check the ingrendiants on the soy sauce, most soy sauce contain wheat or another form of gluten. There are gluten free varieties which taste just as good as, if not better, then regular soy sauce.
Hi Madhuri: I didn’t specify the recipe was gluten free (even though it is). You are correct: soy sauce does contain gluten so should be avoided if you have an allergy. (Tamari does not contain gluten and can be used as a good substitute). Luckily, this recipe doesn’t contain soy sauce, so no worries here: just meat, beans, cheese, and veggies.
Sarah, do you slice the eggplant and then microwave it? Should you cover the dish?
Yes Marlene. Slice the eggplants first, then place in the shallow dish with a little water and microwave (it’s just a fast way to pre-cook the eggplant so it’s soft). You don’t have to cover the dish. You can. But it’s not necessary.