Greek Pastitsio

This is such a delicious dish. I grew up in a 2-flat owned by the Greek family who lived upstairs. The Yaya was such a wonderful cook, and so patient with all of us kids in her kitchen. She made pastitsio for us, and shared the recipe with our mom, as well as several other of her specialty dishes. This recipe is really excellent, and tastes just like Yaya's, and Mom's pastitsio. I wouldn't change a thing! Thank you truebrit, and thanks for making this with real-food ingredients. :)

People! Please do some google searches on fat. It's not the demon it had been made out to be in the past. Fat does not cause heart disease, nor does it make you fat. Read the labels on butter substitutes including margarine and low-fat, fat-free alternatives. The labels should make you cringe. Do you really think all those chemicals are better for you than good, healthy, natural butter?

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To make this dish more healthful, I substituted Fat Free "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" to retain the buttery taste but omit the fat. Also, I used Fat Free Half'nHalf instead of milk to increase richness and decrease fat as well. Finally, I used fiber-enriched pasta elbows to improve nutrition. Sometimes I substitute chopped canned tomatoes for a third of the tomato sauce. Overall, I prefer more cinnamon and nutmeg than this recipe lists, but this dish is always a hit.

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Absolutely excellent dish! I omitted almost all of the butter (used a little with the flour) to cut down on the fat and calories, but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. The mint, cinnamon and nutmeg really made the meat tasty. I served this with 'Cucumber With Feta Cheese and Mint' (Cucumber With Feta Cheese and Mint) and 'Greek-Style Corn on the Cob a La Evelyn' (Greek-Style Corn on the Cob a La Evelyn) as well as steamed broccoli and the meal was a great success. I will be making this dish again. Thank you Truebrit!

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-This was a great dish! I was searching for a recipe that I could make with what I had on-hand in the kitchen, and this was perfect. I made this for my husband, sister, and her boyfriend and they all loved it. Thanks for a great recipe! :)

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This dish turned out wonderfully! Everybody loved it! I asked my guests if there was anything I could have done to make it better and no one could think of anything. I will make it again soon1

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Excellent, easy and not expensive. Who could ask for more?

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This was excellent. It tasted exactly like my Greek girlfriends pastitsio. The only thing was there wasn't enough sauce. Maybe I made too much pasta...I don't know but I will definitely make it again.

UPDATE: I continue to make this recipe, I double the amount of tomato sauce and double the Bechemel. I also mix the pasta with the meat mixture to give an even consistency. I thicken the Bechemel till it is almost "stiff", I also leave it under the broiler @ the end to give some brown marks. My friends Pastitsio has a real thick and fluffy Bechemel. I am just trying to make it more like the version my Greek friend makes. The recipe does use a lot of pots and pans but is worth it.

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I absolutely delicous. I have made this several times.I use skim milk and eggbeaters to make it a bit healthier.Also whole grain pasta and oregano instead of the mint. It's a definate keeper. I get to craving it. Something different.

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Yummy! We really enjoyed this. I didn't have any bucatini or ziti pasta, so I substituted what I had on hand and it worked really well. I also added some sliced black olives to the meat mixture and subbed oregano for the mint. Definitely a recipe that I will make again, thanks for posting.

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Excellent - easy to make, beyond tasty and it really impressed my husband. The bucatini was a bit expensive, so I'll try a different pasta but otherwise, awesome!

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The steps are very well ordered and easy to follow. I've used the recipe several time, with it getting easier each time!

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Tonight was my THIRD time making this, and it is always wonderful! I have tried it two different ways, and like it better when I make the noodles/mix one day and refrigerate, then make the meat/mix and custard portion the next day and put it together the second day and refrigerate at least 8 hours before cooking (letting it sit at room temp about 1 hour before baking). Absolutely scrumptious! I also use "no salt added" tomato sauce and decreased the salt to 1/2 tsp. in the beef/mix. Great for Greek theme dinner with guests. Tonight I served it with Greek marinated Chicken, Tzatziki sauce, orange/minted carrots, greek antipasto, gemma Greek stuffed eggs, hummas, greek pita and olives, and karithopeta for dessert. This is one of our favorites, and GREAT leftover, too.

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GREAT!!!! I made it for a huge family gathering (tripled the recipe), a little extra pasta, and it was perfect. I'm Greek and was hoping it would taste like my Aunt's pastitsio. Right on the money! We never use mint in ours. Add a big Greek salad and you are all set!

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i am greek and was always too scared to make this as i thought it would be difficult to make. I followed this recipe step by step and didnt find it difficult at all and it tasted great as well. The only thing i could recommend is i think it needs a little bit more pasta

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This recipe was spot on! It was a lot easier than it may seem at first and it is absolutely delicious!! Thank you truebrit!!

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Frankly, I was not expecting much from this recipe. I had leftover ground beef from BBQ's over the weekend and was looking for an alternative to burgers. My family likes pasta, so I thought I'd give this a shot. I was a bit overwhelmed by all the steps; but I prepped everything before I started and flew through the recipe no problem. It was delicious! I would suggest making this in two loaf pans so one could be frozen for another meal... but I keep going to the kitchen and sneaking the leftovers - of which I don't think there will be any by tomorrow. WOW. Thanks so much for posting; hopefully, next time I make it, I can remember to make Baklava the night before for a night of Greek food.

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I've made this several times now - it's one of the few dishes my kids make a special request for, and that says a LOT since they're not picky eaters - they're happy with whatever I cook. It does seem like a lot of work when you read through it the first time, but it really isn't - and the more you make it, the faster it seems to go. This one goes in the kids' keepsake cookbooks for sure! Thanks so much for a wonderful recipe and some very special memories.

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Awesome! I double the sauce and then use what I need! A keeper.

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I really enjoyed this, thanks!

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