Moussaka- It's What's for Dinner...in a few hours that is!

Yes, the other day I decided to take an adventure into the recipe book and randomly pick a recipe...bam...opened the book right up to Moussaka. I remembered a few years back being invited to a big Greek family's house for Christmas dinner and this was one of the dishes on the menu. I thought I remembered it being quite tasty...so why not give it a whirl?

Well, since I kind of skim through things when I read them and don't always pay attention to all the fine details...and I've had conversations with other massage therapist skimmers as well, so I know I'm not alone:), when the recipe asked for 8-10 large eggplants I for some reason did not blink an eye or even think to myself "Geesh that sounds like a lot"! While I was at Trader Joes filling my cart up with these large vegetables...eggplant was a magnet for conversation!! I was getting recipe tips and recommendations for Indian spices (maybe Indian food will be the next dish).

Once I finally had all the ingredients, I got home and started prepping...and yes, "prepping" being the key word. One of the guys in Trader Joe's even mentioned this when I told him of my Moussaka excursion...I heard him again in the back of my mind "I hope you like to prep". Okay, sure I do...I love to prep (hee hee)! Am I ever glad I got an early start so I could eat by a decent hour:) There was definitely a fair amount of cutting, slicing, dicing, chopping, peeling and what not. I think the most prep involved were these eggplants....coat them in salt for an hour after slicing, after peeling, then rinse, then dry, then broil till' browned. In a studio apartment, you definitely get creative with counter space...I almost had to start balancing items on my head there for a minute!

When I went back to the recipe book to "prep" the next step I realized...oh...my goodness! I was preparing a dish for 12-18 people...I had to laugh at myself for a moment, and then I thought... yessss! Now I have leftovers:) Once I finally reached the last step of throwing the Moussaka in the oven to bake I felt so overwhelmed with joy...like finishing a great feat or something!

So, the moral? Yes, the moral of the Moussaka story is mmmm mmmm good! I would recommend sharing the warmth of this dish with others, and yes, you will have leftovers, but if you have a big appetite like I do and this is the main dish, it will not feed 12-18 people! The recipe book I took this from is "Nourishing Traditions" and it has an excellent selection of healthy and hearty meals with great tips and pieces of trivia along the way! I also thought you might enjoy a photo of my house guests who were quite pleased the Moussaka madness!

So... a thought for Thanksgiving perhaps?

Michelle B, LMP

www.findtouch.com