PASTICE – BAKED MACARONI
Ingredients
- 300 gr vermicelli or spaghetti
- 2 eggs
- 100 gr greek feta cheese
- 20 gr butter
- 1/2 glass milk (or greek yogurt)
- salt/pepper to taste
- grated cheese (parmesan or white cheddar)
Optional:
- Bechamel (white sauce) – Recipe follows
Directions:
- Boil pasta per package instructions and drain when al dente.
- Add with crumbled feta cheese, butter, milk (or yogurt), eggs, salt/pepper and combine well.
- Put everything in a greased lasagna pan and even it out.
- Cover it with bechamel (white sauce) and dusting of grated cheese.
- Cook in preheated oven at 350 for about 30-40, or until nice and golden.
Notes:
I use bechamel to give it that extra touch and flavor, but most Albanian recipes don’t use it. You can alternatively just dust it with cheese and omit the bechamel.
Bechamel
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 cups milk
Salt
freshly ground pepper
Preparation
Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until the paste cooks and bubbles a bit, but don’t let it brown — about 2 minutes. Add the milk, continuing to stir as the sauce thickens. Bring it to a boil. Add salt and pepper to taste, lower the heat, and cook, stirring for 2 to 3 minutes more. Remove from the heat. To cool this sauce for later use, cover it with wax paper or pour a film of milk over it to prevent a skin from forming.