Greek Pastitsio with Minced Pork | Pasta Bake with Béchamel

Finely chop the onion and garlic cloves. Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a large pan. Sauté the chopped onion until translucent, then add the garlic and minced pork and fry until crumbly and browned all over.

Stir in the tomato paste and roast briefly. Then add the chopped tomatoes, ground cinnamon, fine salt, and ground black pepper. Simmer the sauce gently over medium heat for about 20 minutes until the liquid is significantly reduced and the meat sauce is nicely thick.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Add the penne pasta and cook for 2 minutes less than instructed on the package (very al dente), as it will continue cooking in the oven. Drain the pasta well and mix in one-third of the crumbled feta.