This classic gluten free Pastitsio, sometimes called Greek lasagna, is easier than a traditional lasagna with only three layers. Savvy gluten free cooks take the time to taste test different gluten free noodles and find brands the whole family loves. A basic white sauce, thickened with cornstarch, tops off this oven baked dish making it worthy of adding to your winter meal rotation.
Whether I'm making pastitsio, moussaka or souvlaki; I always serve some version o Greek salad. If you're interested in learning to make more Greek dishes, checkout this Dinner Club menu.
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🍅 Ingredients
Cinnamon and allspice in the meat sauce give this dish a classic Mediterranean taste.
- gluten free penne or macaroni
- olive oil
- onion
- garlic cloves
- ground beef
- canned tomatoes
- tomato paste
- dried oregano, cinnamon and ground allspice
- butter
- cornstarch
- milk or half & half
- egg
- Parmesan cheese
See recipe card for exact amounts.
🇬🇷 Substitutions
Rather than beef you can substitute ground lamb or pork in this dish. Of course you can also use a combination of all three.
🍆 Variations
Borrowing from my classic moussaka recipe, I like to add sautéed zucchini, eggplant or both to the finished meat sauce before assembling this dish. Cut the pieces fairly small so you still get the nice layered look when it is cut.
🧑🏻🍳 Equipment
Every kitchen needs a 9 by 13. That’s the old lingo for an oven safe pyrex baking dish that is 9-inches by 13-inches and often about 2-inches tall. This single pan will give you the distinct layers you want to see when you cut your pastitsio.
Many of the beautiful glazed ceramic pans have slightly different dimensions so larger ones mean your pieces will be thinner. Your dish will taste exactly the same but I go back to my decades old 9 by 13-inch pan for a nice thick piece of pastitsio.
🥶 Storage
This dish can be frozen and like most pasta dishes, gluten free pasta isn't really as good as it was when it came out of the oven the first time. However, no one should complain when they've got a nice hot piece of pastitsio (or moussaka) sitting in front of them.
💡 Top Tip
Be sure to freeze leftover pastitsio in the portion sizes you want to serve the second time around.
🧑🏻🍳 Classic Greek Pastitsio (gluten free)
Ingredients
- 12 oz gluten free penne or macaroni
MEAT SAUCE
- 2 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 can diced tomatoes (19oz/ 540ml)
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
WHITE SAUCE
- ¼ cup butter
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 2 cups milk or half & half
- 1 egg beaten
FINISHING
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
MEAT SAUCE
- Heat oil in large pot over medium heat. Sauté onion and garlic until slightly softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add ground beef and cook, stirring to break up any lumps, until no longer pink, 6-8 minutes.
- Add tomatoes, tomato paste and spices. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Can be made in advance.
- Cook pasta according to package directions or even 1 minute less. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process.
WHITE SAUCE
- Melt butter in medium saucepan. Add cornstarch, salt and pepper and whisk until no lumps remain and butter.
- Pour in ⅓ of the milk/cream and stir over medium heat until thickened slightly. Add the next ⅓ and stir again until thickened. Add the final ⅓ stirring until thick.
- Remove from heat and add egg, stirring until smooth. Set aside.
ASSEMBLY
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly brush 9 x 13-inch baking pan with oil.
- Spread pasta in bottom of prepared pan.
- Top with meat sauce.
- Pour white sauce evenly over meat layer then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
- Bake in preheated oven until nicely browned, 35-45 minutes. Rest for 20 minutes before serving.
If you make this Greek Pastitsio let me know in the comments below how it turned out.
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More Recipes Using White Sauce
- My basic white sauce recipe is made with cornstarch so it has always been gluten free. It's a recipe kids should learn so they can make their own mac and cheese at home. I know you can buy it in a box but just read that ingredient list on occasion and come back to homemade when you're ready.
- Greek Moussaka, similar to a layered lasagne with vegetables instead of pasta..
- Eggs Florentine is a variation of eggs benedict that is a favourite in my house.
- After a holiday turkey this Turkey Tetrazzini is a must and of course you can make it anytime of year too.
- Add a layer of white sauce to any lasagna recipe, stir some into stuffed vegetables or pour it over steamed vegetables. It is a very versatile recipe.
- The fancy French grilled ham and cheese sandwich, Croque Monseiur.
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