Pastelón de Plátano

Description

Ripe plantain pie. Pastelón de Plátano makes a hearty, tasty meal. Serve with side dishes that do not compete with the flavor, such as white or yellow rice or plain pasta.

Ingredients

A

• 3 garlic cloves
• ½ cup pitted olives, pepper or onion-stuffed
• 2 green bell peppers, chopped
• ½ medium onion, chopped
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 tbsp cooking wine

B

• ½ lb lean ground meat
• ⅓ cup raisins

C

• 6 plantains, ripe but not overripe
• 2 tbsp olive oil

D

• 3 tbsp melted butter
• 1 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Pour the olive oil in a medium saucepan and heat over medium heat. Add the remaining ingredients included in (A). Sauté for about five minutes.
2. Warm the oil over medium-high heat. Add the ground garlic and stir-fry for around a minute.
3. Stir the ground meat into the ingredients already in the saucepan. Cook for about ten minutes. Add the Raisins. Continue to cook for another ten minutes or until the meat is cooked but not dry. You may want to remove the bay leaves at this time.
4. Slice the plantains lengthwise. Use a separate saucepan to fry the plantain slices over medium heat in two tablespoonfuls of olive oil. Remove from the saucepan. Wipe excess oil with paper napkins.
5. Use a deep square baking pan. Grease thoroughly with about half of the melted butter. Cover the bottom of the pan with a row of plantains. Add enough of the cooked meat to make a layer, following the style for preparing lasagna.
6. Alternate rows of plantains and meat until both are used up.
7. Pour the remaining melted butter over the pie. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350°F for about twenty minutes.