Moussaka

Even the most chauvinist of Greek authors concede that this casserole of eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) and ground meat came to them (as did so much else) with the Ottoman occupation. Evidence on the ground supports this: Moussaka without the white-sauce topping prevalent in Greece is eaten throughout the Middle East, and called “moussaka.” And it is hard to see how such a dish would have spread from Greece to the rest of the Turkish empire and then become simplified. In any case, “