Sicilian Timballo Recipes

SICILIAN TIMBALLO

Steps:

• Get authentic Sicilian Anelletti Pasta HERE Make the Crust: In a stand mixer, add the flour, salt and the butter cut in cubes. Let the flour absorb all the butter. Add the eggs and let them mix well. Add enough milk (about 1/4 + Cups) until you have a firm ball of dough. Let it rest. Prepare the Eggplant: Wash, peel and slice the eggplant longways about 1/4" tick. Lightly fry all the eggplant slices in olive oil and set aside. Boil the Pasta: In salted water, cook the Anelletti pasta to just before Al Dente. Drain the pasta, blanch it with very cold water and set aside. Make the Meat Sauce: Add 3 Tbs of EV olive oil in a pot followed by the garlic. Once the garlic turns blonde, add the chopped meat. Let the meat brown and add the white wine. Let the alcohol evaporate and add the bay leaves to be removed once the sauce has cooked and cooled off. Add salt and Peperoncino, as desired, and the fresh parsley. Add the crushed tomatoes and the peas. Let the sauce cook for about 5 mins., set aside to cool. Assembly the Timballo: Pre-heat the oven to 350F. Butter and flour a 9" spring-form pan. Mix the pasta and the meat sauce. Take the dough and split it 60/40. Take the larger piece of dough and roll it with a pin to about 1/4" thick and large enough that will line the bottom and the sides of the pan. Place the rolled dough in the pan and cut any excess dough overflowing from the sides. Line the borders of the pan with slices of eggplant with half hanging from the sides of the pan. Line the bottom of the pan with eggplant as well. Line the bottom with a layer of mozzarella. Cover the mozzarella with a layer of pasta until midway into the pan. Add a layer of eggplant and a layer of mozzarella. Cover to the top with pasta to form a little dome. Add another layer of mozzarella and flip over it the eggplant hanging from the sides of the pan. Roll the remaining dough to 1/4" and place over the pan to seal the entire Timballo. Cut any excess dough hanging from the sides and with your fingers seal the bottom and top dough together. Decorate the top of the Timballo as desired and give it a good coating of egg wash. Bake for about 1 to 1 1/4 hours until you have the desired color on top.

TIMBALLO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Cook the pasta sheets in boiling, salted water until al dente. Shock the pasta in cold water. Lay the pasta out onto a clean kitchen towel and dry.
• Take 1/2 of the melted butter and coat the bottom a 13 by 9 by 2-inch pan. Place a layer of pasta to cover bottom of pan. Ladle a thin layer of tomato sauce over the pasta, and sprinkle with 1/4 of the mozzarella. Add another layer of pasta sheets over the cheese. Ladle a thin layer of bechamel sauce over the pasta. Sprinkle 1/4 of the ground veal and 1/4 of the Parmigiano evenly over the bechamel. Repeat layering, until there are 3 layers of each. Add the final layer of fresh pasta and cover top layer with the remaining mozzarella, veal, Parmigiano and tomato sauce. Finally, ladle the remaining 1/4 cup of melted butter over the top and cover the pan with aluminum foil.
• Bake approximately 30 minutes. Let stand for about 10 minutes before serving.
• Saute the onion in olive oil until brown. Add the tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Crush tomatoes with a fork as they soften. Season with salt and pepper and add basil. Simmer for about 1 hour.
• Bring the milk to a simmer in a saucepot. In a saute pan, combine the melted butter with the flour to make roux. Whisk the milk into the roux. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Melt the butter in a saute pan. Add the veal and cook until brown and cooked through. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Drain off excess liquid and set aside.

EGGPLANT TIMBALE

Steps:

• Place a grill pan over medium-high heat or pre-heat a gas or charcoal grill. Using a pastry brush, lightly brush the eggplant slices with 1/3 cup olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill the eggplant until tender and colored with grill marks, about 4 minutes per side. Set aside.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta.
• Meanwhile, warm the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet. Add the onion and saute until tender, about 3 minutes. Add the beef and pork, and brown the meat, breaking it into bite-sized pieces with a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes. Add the Marsala and cook until the liquid has evaporated, about 3 minutes. Turn off the heat. Add the peas and marinara sauce and stir to combine. Add the cheeses, basil, and cooked pasta. Set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the springform pan with the grilled eggplant. Be sure that the slices overlap and hang over the edge of the pan. Fill the pan with the pasta mixture, pressing down to make sure the pan is filling up evenly. Fold the eggplant slices up over the top of the pasta and add a few more slices on top to completely enclose the timbale. Bake the timbale until warmed through and the cheese has melted, about 30 minutes. Let rest on the counter for 10 minutes to set. To serve, invert the timbale onto a serving plate and remove the springform pan. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese over the top. Slice and serve.

TIMBALLO SPAGHETTI CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spread olive oil into the bottom of a cast-iron skillet or large baking dish.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until cooked through but firm to the bite, about 12 minutes; drain.
• Stir spaghetti, marinara sauce, diced chicken, onion, pepperoni, green pepper, mushroom pieces, and black olives together in a large bowl; transfer into the prepared cast-iron skillet. Top with mozzarella cheese in a layer and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in the preheated oven until casserole is bubbling, chicken is cooked through, and the cheese topping is lightly browned, about 30 minutes.

TIMBALLO

Steps:

• For meat sauce:
• Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then sauté sausage, breaking up lumps with a fork, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Add onion and bay leaf and sauté, stirring frequently, until onion begins to brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Add carrot, celery, and salt and sauté, stirring occasionally, until vegetables begin to soften, about 4 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute, then add wine and deglaze by boiling, scraping up any brown bits, until most of liquid is evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes. Add tomato purée and sugar and boil, stirring frequently, until thickened, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool sauce and discard bay leaf.
• For pasta:
• Cook pasta in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling until al dente, then transfer with a skimmer to a colander to drain (do not rinse), reserving water in pot to cook chard. Cool pasta, spread in a baking pan, to warm.
• For chard in béchamel sauce:
• Add chard to pot and simmer, uncovered, until tender, 3 to 5 minutes, then transfer with skimmer to a bowl of ice and cold water. Drain chard and squeeze handfuls, then finely chop.
• Heat butter in a 1 1/2- to 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat until foam subsides, then add garlic and cook, whisking, 1 minute. Add flour and cook, whisking, 1 minute, then add milk in a slow stream, whisking. Bring to a boil, whisking. Reduce heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, until sauce is slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in chard, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and 2 tablespoons Parmigiano, then remove pan from heat.
• Assemble and bake timballo:
• Put oven rack in lower third of oven and preheat oven to 375°F.
• Oil soufflé dish and line bottom with a round of parchment paper, then oil parchment. Cover bottom of dish with a single layer of pasta. Sprinkle 1/2 cup mozzarella and 3 tablespoons Parmigiano over pasta, then spoon half of meat sauce in an even layer over cheese. Arrange one third of remaining pasta over meat sauce in soufflé dish and top with all of chard, then another layer of pasta (about half of remainder). Sprinkle with remainder of cheeses, then spoon remaining meat sauce over cheese. Top with remaining pasta. (You may have pasta left over.) Cover pasta with an oiled round of parchment (oiled side down) and cover dish with foil.
• Bake in a in wide 6- to 8-quart pot until bubbling and a metal skewer or thin knife inserted in center of timballo comes out hot to the touch, about 1 hour. Remove soufflé dish from water bath and let stand, covered, 15 minutes. Remove foil and parchment and run a knife around edge of timballo to loosen, then invert a platter over soufflé dish and invert timballo onto platter. Remove soufflé dish and remaining parchment.