Winter time moussakas with meat and cauliflower

A different version of the famous Greek dish but it doesn't lack in taste or presentation at all! An old version of the classic recipe coming from the Greeks of Asia Minor where instead of aubergines and potatoes they used cauliflower

Ingredients (for 6-8 people):
1 medium cauliflower
600gr. of ground beef
1 onion, grated
½ tea-cup of olive oil
1 tea-cup of fresh tomatoes, grated
salt
pepper
1 cinnamon stick
1 tea-cup of salty hard cheese

For the béchamel sauce:
1 tbsp of butter
1 tbsp of olive oil
4 tbsp of flour
700ml full fat milk (warm)
salt
a pinch of nutmeg

Method:
Preheat the oven to 190°C.

Separate the cauliflower in florets and blanch it in a saucepan with boiling water for 2 minutes. Transfer it immediately into another pot with cold water so to stop the boiling. Drain the florets in a colander and let it aside.

In a frying pan, heat the olive oil in medium to high heat and sauté the ground beef until it changes colour. Add the onion, the cinnamon, a bit of salt, pepper and the tomato. Turn the heat to medium and let it cook for about 15-20 minutes.

Get a pyrex dish and brush it with margarine. On the bottom, spread a layer of cauliflower florets and on top spoon half of the beεf mixture and sprinkle with some grated cheese. Repeat the layers until you spend all the ingredients and let the pyrex aside.

In a small saucepan heat the butter and the oil in medium heat. Add the flour, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon so it won't crumble. Gradually add the warm milk stirring at the same time thoroughly until you get a thick sauce. Season with salt and pepper, nutmeg and take off the heat.

Spoon the béchamel sauce over the pyrex dish to cover the ingredients. Put in the oven and bake for 35 minutes.

When it's nicely coloured take out of the oven and let it stand for about 30-40 minutes before serving.