Pastelon de Yuca from Chantal Aybar @letstrythis_orlando

Ingredients:

Yuca Mash

• 4 lbs Yuca
• 16oz Shredded Mozzarella 8oz Shredded Cheddar
• 1 stick Salted butte
• 2 cups of milk
• Olive oil
• Peppe
• Salt

Sofrito

• 1/2 Red onion
• 3oz tomato paste
• 2 lbs of Beef Chuck (or preferred thick cut)
• 1/2 bell pepper Fresh Oregano 3-4 garlic cloves
• Cream
• 1/2 cup corn starch
• 6 cups of milk
• 1 cube of Chicken flavor Bouillon ( caldo de gallina) 1/2 stick Butter

Directions:

1. Choose a thick cut of meat; I went with beef chuck but you can try a different one or skip the meat if you are vegetarian, because either way this will be delicious. Boil the meat first until tender because this will take the longest, I added salt and a bit oregano for a nice aroma.
2. Once done let the beef cool down and shred it.
3. Next up start working on a sofrito, you will need olive oil, a red pepper (if you know me, you know how much I like those), a red onion, tomato paste, salt, thyme, fresh oregano, and chopped garlic.
4. Stir it all together and add your shredded beef. Add my favorite touch: chopped olives!
5. Peel the yuca and let it boil. Let it cool down. Then add salted butter, some of the water in which the yuca boiled, milk, pepper and time to mash!
6. Now let’s work on a nice cream to top the pastelon with. Mix milk, corn starch, butter, and caldo de gallina (chicken flavor Bouillon). Simmer and then blend it to your desired thickness.
7. Lastly, let's assemble the pastelon in layers: start with a yuca layer, then a shredded beef layer, next add two types of cheese, I added cheddar and mozzarella but feel free to choose different types of cheese. Continue with another yuca layer, add the cream and top it all off with more cheese! Bake it at 450 for about 30 mins or until golden. Now my favorite part, try it out and enjoy!!