We don’t make many casseroles in the Chaos household. I have nothing against them but the kids don’t eat well when their food is all mixed up together. This is one of the few casseroles that I do make. It is like a lasagna in that it is not a quick, one dish meal-it requires making different things then assembling the final dish, but it isn’t difficult and it makes a TON. I usually take the opportunity to divide this into two smaller casseroles then I store one in the freezer for another night. The great thing is leftovers are just as wonderful, and you will have plenty of them.

This is another Greek dish that I cannot vouch for its authenticity. I will tell you though not to freak out about the cinnamon stick. It is not like putting ground cinnamon in the dish-please don’t do that!-it just imparts a subtle warm, richness to the beef. Honestly I can’t taste it at all, the meat just tastes meatier. Daddy Chaos says he can taste it but not enough to freak him out, he told the kids it was Christmas meat.

I love pastitsio. The meat sauce is flavorful and rich and the bechamel covered noodles are light and creamy. The edges get chewy and browned-a requirement for any good casserole. Try this for the first time on a chilly weekend when cooking and baking seem like the perfect afternoon activity and I promise you’ll be hooked after the first bite.

Pastitsio

serves 12, prep 1 hour, cook time 2 hours, adapted from Recipezaar

Meat Sauce

• oil
• 2 onions, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 lbs ground beef, pork, lamb or combination
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes in puree
• 1/3 cup kalamata olives, chopped
• 1 tsp Greek oregano
• 1 cinnamon stick
• salt and pepper

Pasta

• 1 lb small tubular pasta, i used mini penne
• 8 tbsp butter melted
• 2 cups milk
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Bechamel Sauce

• 6 tbsp butter
• 1/3 cup flour
• 4 cups milk
• pinch nutmeg
• salt and pepper
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1. Prepare meat sauce first. Heat oil in a large skillet and add onion. Cook until softened and add garlic.
2. Add meat and cook until browned, breaking up chunks with a wooden spoon. Add remaining meat sauce ingredients, mix and simmer one hour, covered.
3. While meat sauce is cooking, bring a large pot of water to boil then salt generously and add pasta.
4. Cook pasta to al dente, drain and return to the cooled pot. With the heat off, stir in butter, milk, eggs and cheese. Set aside.
5. Prepare bechamel sauce by melting butter over medium high heat in a large sauce pan or medium pot. Whisk in flour and cook for several minutes, whisking smooth, do not allow the roux to scorch.
6. Slowly add milk, whisking constantly until thickened. If your milk is cool and sauce seems thin, bring to a boil stirring constantly then remove from heat once thick. Add salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
7. Beat 3 eggs in a medium bowl for bechamel sauce: slowly add sauce to beaten eggs, being careful to keep from curdling the eggs. I usually start by tempering the eggs, that is I dip my whisk in the hot sauce then whisk those drops into the eggs, then continue doing this a few times before attempting to slowly dribble about a 1/4 cup of sauce into the bowl. Once you’ve gotten about that much successfully incorporated, you can go ahead and slowly add the rest.
8. Remove the cinnamon stick from the meat, allow sauce to cool slightly and prepare casserole dishes.
9. Grease a large lasagna pan or two medium casserole dishes with oil then construct pastitsio by layering: pasta mixture, meat sauce, more pasta mixture. Finish by covering with bechamel and sprinkling grated Parmesan over the top.
10. Bake casserole at 350°F for approximately 45 min to 1 hour until bechamel is set and golden. I bake two casseroles and remove one at about 30 minutes. Allow it to cool then cover in plastic wrap then foil and place in the freezer for another dinner.
11. Once casserole is nicely browned on top, remove from oven and allow to rest 20 minutes.
12. Clean up kitchen, prepare steamed veggies or salad, then cut pastitsio into squares and serve.

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Going apple picking this fall? Unfortunately, living on the gulf coast means I can’t bring bushels of apples home from the farm, so pick a few for me. We aren’t huge applesauce or apple butter fans, so if I could bring home dozens of cheap apples, this is what I would make. Homemade apple cider is a fun project and a great way to use up all of those little, imperfect apples you get from pick-yourself farms or in huge bags at the grocery store during this time of year. It is incredibly easy with almost no prep work: just simmer your apples with your favorite cider spices, then strain and serve hot and steaming. You can make this cider as sweet, tart or spicy as you’d like which is why I like it. I will admit my favorite cider comes from cider beetles, but this is a close second and a fun project nonetheless. The kids wash the apples, I give them a rough chop then they throw everything in a pot and fill it with water. They love it and we sit around the table before bedtime, sipping from warm mugs, and talking about all of the fun we are going to have in the coming weeks.

Old Fashioned Apple Cider

• 12 or so small-medium apples, assorted types
• 1 small orange
• 1/2-1 cup brown sugar
• 3-4 cinnamon sticks
• 1 whole nutmeg
• 1 tbsp whole cloves
• water to cover

1. Wash and roughly chop apples and orange-do not worry about removing peels, seeds, or stems. Toss into a large stock pot.
2. Add sugar (I start with 1/2 cup, you can always add more later).
3. Add spices, and cover with water.
4. Bring to a boil and boil uncovered for at least an hour.
5. Cover and reduce to a simmer. Allow juice to simmer for at least two hours.
6. Uncover and use a potato masher to roughly mash content of pot. To further reduce: continue simmering until cider is dark and tastes sweet and spicy.
7. When cider is ready allow to cool then strain apple pieces and whole spices into a clean pitcher or pot. If you feel like it you can strain everything through a cheesecloth and twist and squeeze to get every last drop.
8. Serve hot. Store in the fridge and reheat as desired. I usually get about a 1/2 gallon.

Risotto is not a childhood food for Mr. Chaos or me, but it has become a comfort food. Years ago, after a disastrous first attempt, risotto was put on the cannot cook list and forgotten. However, since giving it a try at restaurants and understanding what it’s supposed to taste like, we gave it another chance. One thing I have learned-comparing the risotto I make now with that first ill-fated attempt-is that the type of rice matters. My first attempt at risotto was with regular long-grain rice because someone had told me it would work fine. Well, that person apparently doesn’t know what risotto is supposed to taste like because it doesn’t work at all. You need to use Arborio or medium grain rice. I have also seen it simply labelled “Risotto Rice.” I am sorry.  I was wrong.  See my update here.

The great thing about risotto is you can make it any way you like. Add chopped, sauteed mushrooms and mushroom stock in place of the chicken stock and you’ve got a mushroom risotto. Add cooked peas and shrimp and use seafood stock. Add a ton of cheese and vegetables or beef stock and Italian sausage. Risottos can include whatever you like, easily making them into main dishes. The ingredients are simple and ones you can keep on hand for an easy pantry dinner.

Basic Risotto

• 3 tbsp butter
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup arborio rice
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 3-4 cups chicken stock
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1. Bring stock to a boil and turn down to simmer, keep hot while cooking risotto.
2. In a separate pot over medium heat, melt butter with a little oil and saute the onion until soft. Add garlic.
3. When onion and garlic are soft, add rice and toss to coat. Allow to toast lightly in the butter.
4. Add white wine and stir until almost completely absorbed.
5. Adding about a cup at a time, add hot stock to rice and stir. Once stock is absorbed, add the next cup of hot stock and so on.
6. At about 3 1/2 cups, check the texture and seasoning of the risotto. Salt and pepper. Add more stock if necessary.
7. Once risotto is tender and creamy, remove from the heat and stir in Parmesan cheese. This is also the point where you could stir in any additional ingredients.
8. Drizzle with flavored olive oil if desired and serve!

It’s the end of the week for us so I was out of most of my fresh ingredients. I always have frozen shrimp on hand so I decided to make some simple, flavorful shrimp to serve alongside the risotto. I love cooking shrimp because they cook so quickly and it gives you time to focus on the other aspects of the meal, yet they still feel special to serve.

Quick Lemon Garlic Shrimp

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 minced garlic clove
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 lb shrimp
• 2 lemons, zest and juice
• parsley

1. Thaw shrimp quickly under running water if frozen.
2. Heat oil in a pan over high heat.
3. Remove from heat and add garlic and pepper.
4. Return to heat and add shrimp.
5. Allow shrimp to cook undisturbed until opaque. Stir once to flip half way through.
6. Turn off heat, add lemon zest, juice, and parsley. Salt and pepper.
7. Toss to coat, serve immediately.

I have never been the biggest graham cracker fan. Even when making s’mores by the fire, I usually just roast my marshmallow and eat the chocolate separately. So when I feel like s’mores, I turn to these instead. What could be better than warm, melted chocolate and marshmallows tucked between buttery, toasted flour tortillas-fried and dusted with cinnamon sugar? Certainly not a cold, dry graham cracker. Make any night a fiesta by whipping these up for dessert!

S’more-dillas

• 2 flour tortillas
• softened butter
• chocolate chips
• mini marshmallows
• cinnamon sugar

1. Butter one side of each tortilla.
2. Place one tortilla, butter side down, on a medium hot frying pan or griddle. Sprinkle lightly with chocolate chips and mini marshmallows. Cover with second tortilla, butter side up.
3. Allow tortilla to cook until lightly browned, then flip.
4. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and cook until filling is melted and bottom tortilla is browned.
5. Remove to a cutting board and cut into wedges with a pizza wheel.