PASTELÓN

by Annalyse Melendez

The people who inspired this dish for me are my mother and my grandpa. Take a lasagna, but make it Caribbean, replacing the pasta with nice, golden-brown sweet maduros (fried, sweet plantains). If you’re looking for an easy, quick, and delicious dinner, this pastelón recipe is for you.

Serves: 5-6 Estimated Cook Time: 1 hour

Ingredients

8 yellow ripe plantains

1 pound block Polly-O mozzarella cheese

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

5 cloves garlic, minced

1 pound ground beef

2 tablespoons Italian seasoning

16 ounces Hunt’ s spaghetti sauce with meat ¼ cup merlot wine

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 °F.

2. Cut off the ends of the sweet plantains. With a knife, lightly cut through the skin lengthwise, being careful not to cut the inner portion, and peel off the skin. Cut the sweet plantain in half horizontally and then cut each half vertically into ¼-inch thick planks.

3. Grate half a cup of cheese on the coarse side of a box grater. Slice the remaining block in half and slice each half into ¼-inch thick pieces. Set both grated and sliced cheeses aside.

4. Heat the vegetable oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the ground beef along with the Italian seasoning and cook, breaking the meat up and stirring occasionally lightly until browned.

5. Add the spaghetti sauce and the wine, stirring until everything is combined. Bring everything to a simmer and reduce heat to medium low. Continue cooking until the mixture thickens and reduces slightly.

6. In a large frying pan, heat about 1-inch high of canola oil over medium high heat. Once hot, fry the plantain pieces in batches for about 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown in color.

Assembly:

1. In a 9x13-inch baking dish, layer about 1/3 of the meat sauce. Arrange about half of the fried plantains in a neat layer on top of the sauce. Some gaps are acceptable.

2. Pour another third of the meat sauce over the plantains, followed by all of the sliced mozzarella. Pour the remaining meat sauce over the cheese and top with the other half of the fried plantains.

3. Finish with a light layer of shredded mozzarella cheese on top, then bake the pastelón for 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Use these as a fun way to get out of your comfort zone! or

Go to the first local restaurant that pops up on your social media feed Or

Jot down your least favorite ingredient and think of a recipe with this ingredient. or

Spin a globe and whatever your finger lands on, find a business that cooks food from that cuisine Or

Draw out the perfect business that you would build for yourself or

Truth Truth Truth

Go with a friend to different delis across the street and order the same thing. See if their food tastes the same or different. Or

With a friend, find a food blogger and make a competition to see who can make the best version of that meal.