Happy, happy Wednesday lovers!
So you know how when you love to cook, some recipes come out better than others? It happens to the best of us and the key is to just accept it, improve it and then shrug off the failure. It’s going to happen, a few times so suck it up, buttercup.
My hubby recently asked me to attempt a moussaka and after a significant amount of side-eye sent his way, I gathered the ingredients and attempted it. I’ve stayed away from moussaka over the years mostly because I dislike eggplant for the most part.
Also, this vegan moussaka recipe does not have eggplant, but potatoes.
What is Moussaka?
Moussaka is a layered dish of Greek origin, at least as far as I’m aware. Usually there is eggplant or potatoes with a tomato-based meat sauce, and a bechamel layer. That’s the end of my lesson. 🙂
Moussaka Veganized
I used crumbled smoked tofu for the mince. I used Vemondo brand because it’s malleable and flavorful without being too salty and overbearing. Season the crumbles and pop in the oven for 10 minutes. You’ll get crispy goodness
You can use jarred tomato sauce but I like to do it myself so I bought crushed tomatoes, onion, garlic, oregano & basil and made my own tomato sauce. Let it simmer until it’s nice and thick and then stir in the smoked crumbles.
Cut the potato layers with a mandolin or a food processor so they’re thin-ish. If you cut them too thick, it will take forever to cook all the way through…unless you parboil the slices before hand, in which case you can make them as thick as you like.
Bechamel is a thick cream sauce, so you go with your favorite plant milk, vegan butter and vegan cheese and a pinch of nutmeg, and call it good.
Verdict
Well, as you can see from the photos, the vegan moussaka didn’t come out all that pretty. It was really tasty though, except for the bechamel, it wasn’t my favorite. Then again, I was never a big fan of bechamel because even with all the bells & whistles, it tastes way too milky. My problem with the vegan bechamel is that it was mostly bland.
Next time I make it, I’ll skip it.
The other thing I wasn’t super impressed about? The structure. It didn’t hold the way I thought it would, but I’m 99% sure that was also my fault. I should have started cooking earlier so that the vegan moussaka had time to set properly and I didn’t do that…my mistake.
The second serving at dinner? Much better. Everything set as it should have and it looked as good as it tasted…except the bechamel.
Okay, okay, I’m giving it a rest.
It was nice. A lot of work, but he was happy with it and that made me happy.
Have you ever made moussaka before? Got any tips for me?
The Spicy Spatula 
Whatcha think?