Wednesday, January 18, 2012

A Virtual Potluck with Gojee

Have you been on Gojee before? A while back, I had spotted it and was so excited at the prospect of screen-sized food photos at the touch of a button that I was on it all the time. Getting a little more engrossed, I decided to get in touch with the great team behind Gojee to see if I could contribute. Veronica emailed me, informing me that they weren't looking for new contributors. Oh, the heartbreak.  

A while later, Veronica contacted me again telling me that they've accepted my recipes and that my blog was now included. Happy day! Today, Gojee is hosting a potluck that I can't be there for but Veronica asked me so kindly to join the fun in Gojee's virtual potluck. 

Starting on Thursday, January 26, check out other potluck dishes fellow gojee contributors shared. Go to gojee.com and enter "gojeepotluck" into I Crave. You can also follow #gojeepotluck on Twitter. This is my contribution. 
One last bit of niceness to Gojee before I go: Gojee has now been nominated for "Best Design" at the 2011 Crunchies. I wish our wonderful team plenty of luck, hugs and food to keep the anxiety away. I can honestly say I'm very proud to be part of such an exceptional group of people who spend time, money and effort to bring homemade food to the world.
Basterma Pasta Bake
You'll need:
4 cups of pasta
100 grams of butter
110 grams of basterma
2 long red Italian onions, sliced
¼ cup of all-purpose flour
2 cups of full cream milk
½ a teaspoon of whole-grain mustard
½ cup of heavy cream
2 egg yolks, beaten
½ cup of Mozzarella cheese
½ cup of Cheddar cheese
½ cup of Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste


Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius. In a large pot, cook the pasta until it's tender but undercooked. Drain and set aside. In a medium-sized pan, pan-fry the basterma in a drizzle of oil until it changes color and becomes slightly crispy around the edges. Keep the basterma fat that has melted in the pan on the side to use for later. In the same pan, melt 50 grams of butter and saute the onions over medium-low heat for approximately 10 minutes. They should have started to slightly color but should remain soft. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a medium-sized pot, melt 50 grams of butter. Add the basterma grease you previously reserved and add the flour. Whisk constantly as it cooks for around 1 minute. Add the milk and cream and cook for 3-5 minutes or until it begins to thicken.
Add salt and pepper and turn your heat down.

In a separate bowl, combine the egg yolks with 4 tablespoons of your bechamel-like sauce. Stir quickly then pour the egg mixture back into the sauce. Let it combine for a minute. Add the cheese and stir. Once the cheese has melted, add most of the basterma and onions and mix. Keep some on the side. Add the pasta and coat it all with the sauce. Tip your pot over a baking dish and pour your pasta mixture. Sprinkle with the rest of your onion and basterma mix and bake for around 20-25 minutes. Serve steaming hot. 

3 comments:

  1. Ooohhh! My Dad is from Greece and we eat basterma with scrambled eggs all the time, but I've never really thought/seen it included in other dishes before. This sounds AMAZING! I will have to make this for my family the next time I go home, they'll get a kick out of seeing it prepared a new way :)

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  2. I love Gojee too and every time I am in that site .. i loose track of time! I get lost in all those macro food shot. Love what you contributed for the potluck .. absolutely yummy!

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  3. I also LOVE Gojee, and have saved so many new recipes to try that way. The shots are beautiful.

    I'm wondering, is there anything else I could use instead of the Basterma?

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