Greek Meat Pie - This one is for my Dad

My Dad passed away in October, 2014.  I still miss him.

I was looking at things around my house that reminded me of him, and I got to thinking about him from a food perspective.  I have a clear memory of being in my mid-teens when he took me to a local butcher shop and bought some extra-thick pork chops.  Once home, he cut a pocket into them, stuffed them, and baked them.  My dad!  He didn't always cook, but he liked to give it a try now and then.

My stepmother, who is an excellent cook, used to make this main course recipe for him, which he LOVED.  I'm not sure what book she got the recipe from, but it doesn't matter, because she modified it to suit his (their!) tastes and preferences.  That is what I decided to try for this post.

So here you go, Dad, this one is for you.  Thanks to my stepmom for sharing the recipe.

Kreatopita Cephalonitiki - Greek Meat Pie, Island Version  
- as modified by my stepmom and a little by me.

2 pounds ground beef

olive oil, as needed

1 onion, chopped 

2 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped 

1/4 cup rice

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 cup dry red wine

orange zest from one whole orange, finely grated

1 Tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint

1 teaspoon dried parsley

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

3 Tablespoons canned, diced tomatoes, pureed (or tomato sauce)

1 large zucchini, raw, diced

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/2 cup four-cheese mixture, shredded (or Parmesan or Romano)

1/2 pound filo sheets (divided into two sets of four 1/2 sheets each)

1/4 cup (or less) melted butter

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 

Cook the ground beef in a little olive oil until just a little pink is left.  

Separately, saute the chopped onion in olive oil until golden; turn off the heat and add the chopped garlic, tossing for another minute or so more. 

Move the meat to a bowl, saving the juices in a measuring cup and skimming off the fat, if you can.  Add the salt and pepper to the meat.  Add the onion and garlic mixture, mixing well.

Add water to the juices to achieve 2 cups liquid.

Put the rice and one cup of the juices in the meat's fry pan, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.  Check it occasionally to make sure there is enough water, adding more as necessary.

In the bowl with the meat, add the rice, the last cup of the juices, wine, orange rind, mint, parsley, cinnamon, tomato puree, diced zucchini, and the two cheeses.  Mix together well.

Melt the butter over a low heat. 

Butter an 8 x 12 x 2-inch glass casserole dish.  Line the bottom half with four half-sheets of filo, brushing each layer with butter.

Spread the filling evening over the filo.  Cover the filling with four more half-sheets of filo, again brushing each layer with butter.

Score through the top layers of filo to designate 8 pieces.

Bake for 45 minutes.  Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes before cutting and serving.

Still a bit of pink left in that meat.

The garlic is barely cooked, but it sure smells good.

Watch the rice so it doesn't dry out.

All the filling ingredients, premixing.

Now they are mixed.

TOO. MUCH. BUTTER.

Beautiful, no?

My Notes

The original recipe started with leg of lamb, but my stepmom and I both used ground beef.

I wrote down the spice amounts she used, but I used a fresh orange and fresh mint.

The original recipe specified potatoes, but we both liked the idea of zucchini.  It also said to put sliced hard-boiled eggs over the top of the meat mixture before covering it.  

She used a butter-flavored spray instead of butter.  I went for the butter!

The Verdict

This is tasty!  It is a robust meal, very filling, but the spices make it interesting and the zucchini makes it lighter than using potatoes.

The meat gives an umami taste, of course; the spices add complexity, although I wished I had added more orange zest; and the filo dough gives a nice crunch.  I think some of the spices could be increased, too, and you would still have a lovely meal.

The only issue we (myself and several guest tasters) had was that I was too heavy-handed with the butter between the layers.  It was too buttery, which distracted from the rest of flavors.  I haven't used filo in a long time, and I should have just put a light layer between the sheets.   It wasn't a problem with the top layer, but it was with the bottom layer. 

Success! 

We had leftovers, which were also tasty, except we couldn't get the crunch back into the top layers of filo.  That was okay.