This was a recipe request that came in a couple of weeks ago, moussaka is one of my most favourite dishes in the whole World, but with this recipe we strip it right back and almost make a naked vegetarian moussaka that is lower in fat and absolutely delicious.
Start off by putting the aubergine and courgette slices in a pan of nearly boiling water, let them cook away for 4 minutes then scoop them out of the pan into a mixing bowl. Use the pan to cook the potatoes for a further 8-10 minutes until cooked through and again add to our big bowl.
Blister the peppers using a griddle pan until they have nice charred marks and are nice and softened, add these to the bowl too before following up with the chopped tomatoes, beans, cinnamon and basil. Give a brief stir then add some olive oil and extra seasoning.
The cheesy yoghurt topping is made my mixing the natural yoghurt with the cheese and a beaten egg, although more cinnamon could be added now.
Pour the vegetables into a baking dish and level out with the back of a spoon before covering in the cheesy yoghurt topping (I actually sprinkled parmesan on the veg before the yoghurt too for added cheese power!).
Bake for 30-35 minutes at gas mark 4 or equivalent then serve up your vegetarian moussaka with a portion of salad and some of the pan juices drizzled on top. It’s worth noting this is more of a naked lasagne, it’s not completely solid and stodgy so has a lighter vibe, you could fill those air pockets by adding lentils to the recipe too!
I loved this recipe, if I was to make it again I would add more seasoning for sure, but Mrs Barry is not a huge fan of pepper and I did not want to kill the taste with the cinnamon, but tweak it and make it your own and enjoy this healthier vegetarian moussaka.