Greek moussaka made from scratch

I sometimes wonder why food producing companies make my life (and that of others suffering from allergies or intolerances) so incredibly difficult, especially on days when time seems scarce and you would like to produce an easy meal just like that. You know, when you can run through the supermarket grab anything box with a meal on it you fancy and get the extra ingredients to toss into a ready made sauce and so on and so forth. But you can't, because those ready to cook kinda meals are filled with those buggers of gluten. I can't count the times anymore that I sighed and said: Why for heaven's sake can't they use maize starch instead of wheat starch or flour???? 
But I know exactly why, because this glutenfreemomma once worked for a milling plant, and flour is much more inexpensive than any starch. Yes, I've worked for a company specialized in the products that make my kids sick. Stay close to the hazard and you learn so much!! Which products are made with flour for example, but also about the nutrients my kids miss because they can't eat normal bread etc. It was a great experience and I can also tell you, flour and wholemeal is not a unhealthy product, it only is if it makes you sick. So to those thinking glutenfree is healthier. It's not! I can't stress this enough. If you are not in some way sensitive, allergic or intolerant to gluten or wheat, don't do this diet! 

But I'm drifting off. Where was i? Oh right: actually, I should thank the food producing industry, because they force me to make many things from scratch, sparing me and my family from extra added sugars, preservatives and other stuff you basically don't need. I get to taste food the way it was meant to taste, even though I sometimes "cheat" by grabbing a tin of chopped tomatoes instead of the fresh ones. Hey, I'm only human and a busy, working mom and wife so I am allowed to cheat like that. Well, one day i got so frustrated by staring at those ready made meals, that I grabbed the packet of Greek Moussaka (which I loved, but didn't know how to make from scratch in a way that it tasted like actual Moussaka) and walked through the supermarket grabbing everything from the back listed and decided to buy it. At home I googled for a decent recipe and adapted that with the extra ingredients (mainly herbs, the secret is in the herbs!!!) I saw listed on the back of that "Moussaka ready in half an hour' box. Here's the recipe for it. The moral of this tale? You can make anything glutenfree if you want to invest time and effort! In this case, you invest the time, I've invested the effort for you! ;-)

Glutenfree, vegetarian (if you eat dairy & eggs) Greek Moussaka in the making

Ingredients:

• 450 grams (1 lb) of minced meat (optional, I don't use the meat, my kids love it better without)
• 1-2 eggplant (I mostly use two as I love to make a big tray of moussaka and then freeze the left overs for an easy meal on a busy day).
• 450 grams (1 lb) of precooked sliced potatoes (you can also peel potatoes, cook them in salted water for about 10-15 minutes and let them cool before you slice them, they fully cook in the oven)
• 3  tins of 400 grams (14 oz) of chopped tomatoes (or an equal amount of fresh ones that you chop off, but i can't be bothered. ;-))
• 0.5 a jar of sundried tomato tapenade
• a glove of garlic (two if you like the taste of the Mediterranean ;-))
• pinch of salt
• pinch of pepper
• two teaspoons of oregano
• two teaspoons of tarragon
• one teaspoon of thyme
• two teaspoons of dried basil 
  (if you want to use fresh herbs, put in a bit more because the dried versions are often more powerful, but fresh herbs are even better!)
• 250 grams (9 oz) of thick greek yoghurt
• 2 eggs
• 100-200 grams (3.5 to 7 oz) of grated parmesan cheese 
• 1 packet of feta cheese (about 7 oz?)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees centigrade (400 degrees fahrenheit).

Slice the eggplant and sprinkle them with a bit of salt. This will help release the excess water in the product. Leave for 10 minutes while you preheat a grillpan. Pat off the excess salt and water with some paper towel. Grill the slices in the grillpan until they have those beautiful black grill stripes. Set aside. 

If you make the moussaka with minced meat, put this in the pan bake it while loosening it.  Add the tins of chopped tomatoes and press in the clove(s) of garlic. Add the sundried tomato tapenade and  add the spices. Taste. If you feel it needs a bit more of something, just add it! 

Mix the yoghurt with 1/4th of the grated parmesan and 1/4th of the feta (crumbled) and two eggs. Add some salt and pepper to finish it. Set aside.  

Grease a pyrex oven tray/bowl. Put half of the tomatoe/minced meat sauce in it. Spread half of the potatoe slices on top of it. Crumble half of the feta that is left on it. Add half of the eggplant on top of it. Now repeat all the layers and finish with the yoghurt mix on top of the second layer of eggplant. 

Put in the oven for about 35 minutes. Serve with a Greek salad. 

Bon appetit!