Pastitsio

To make Pastitsio:

Add the pasta to a pot of salted, boiling water until el dente or a just a bit firmer — the pasta will also cook in the oven later.

Drain well, and return the pasta to the pot.

Into the pasta, stir in melted butter, grated parmesan cheese, milk, and beaten eggs.

Set mixture aside.

In a large skillet or saucepan, cook the ground beef, ground hot sausage, and chopped onion until the meat loses its pink color and the onion is soft and translucent.

Drain the meat mixture in a colander to remove any excess fat and return to the skillet.

Stir in the chopped parsley, garlic, tomato sauce, salt, pepper, mint, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugar. Rinse out the tomato sauce jar with some water and add. Taste, and adjust the flavor.

I often add a few chili flakes at this point as well, but it is optional.

Let the meat sauce gently simmer for a few minutes or up to a couple of hours — depending on how much time you have. Obviously, the longer it simmers, the deeper the flavors will develop.

The sauce shouldn't be too runny.

In a saucepan, melt 1/2 cup of butter on medium-high heat. Add 1/2 cup of flour and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Stir with a whisk. Keep whisking, letting it bubble for a couple of minutes to cook the flour.

Lower heat to medium.

Stir in 2 cups of milk, stirring quickly with a whisk so no lumps form. This will thicken quickly.

Slowly add another 2 cups of milk while still stirring — one cup at at a time until the mixture thickens to your liking.

Personally, I look for the bechamel to become a thin pudding-like consistency. You don't want it too thick at this point, because it will thicken even more when you add the eggs.

Remove the bechamel sauce from the heat. Let it sit for 5 minutes.

In the meantime, beat two eggs in a small bowl. After the bechamel has cooled for five minutes, add 1/2 cup of the bechamel sauce to the eggs, stirring constantly with a fork while adding the sauce.

Add another 1/2 cup of the sauce and stir into the eggs. Do this two more times until you've added two cups of the bechamel sauce.

Pour the egg and bechamel mixture into the pot of bechamel, stirring well with a whisk.

Add 2/3 cup of grated parmesan cheese, and a sprinkle of nutmeg. Stir until well incorporated.

Set the bechamel sauce aside.

Stir pasta mixture since it's been sitting for awhile. Distribute 1/2 of the pasta mixture onto the bottom of a 11" x 13" pan.

Spoon and spread all of the meat mixture evenly on top of the pasta.

Add the other half of the pasta mixture on top of the meat mixture.

Pour the bechamel sauce over the top to cover completely.

Sprinkle with a bit of nutmeg.