Timballo Genovese Recipes

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.

TIMBALLO

Steps:

• For the base pasta layer: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the penne for 10 minutes. Then chill in an ice bath after cooking until cool to the touch. Drain and set aside in a large bowl.
• For the sauce: Heat a 12-inch cast-iron pan over medium-high heat and add the oil. Once, heated, add the onions, garlic, baharat, red chile flakes, fennel seeds and turmeric and cook for 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for another 15 minutes. Puree with an immersion blender if the tomato pieces are large. Season with salt. Add the sauce to the cooked penne pasta along with the Pecorino-Romano. Stir to combine and keep at room temperature.
• For the fregola layer: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the fregola pasta for 12 minutes scoop out to drain. Set aside in a large bowl. Add the asparagus to the boiling water and let cook until brightened in color, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove to a large plate and let sit until just cool to the touch. Add the peas to the boiling water and let cook until brightened in color, about 2 minutes. Drain and set aside in a large bowl.
• Cut the asparagus into 1-inch pieces and add to the bowl with the peas. Add the pesto and stir to combine. Add the fregola and stir to combine. Set aside.
• For the lasagna layer: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Preheat a pizza oven or oven to broil.
• Boil the pasta sheets for 3 minutes and chill in ice water. Set aside.
• Put the peppers onto a sheet tray and put in the oven to char on all sides, about 10 minutes total, rotating as needed. Remove from the oven and put into a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to steam for 10 minutes. Once cool enough to handle, remove from the bowl and carefully remove most of the charred skin. Stem, seed and slice the red peppers into thick slices and set aside.
• Put a 12-inch cast-iron pan over medium-high heat and add the oil. Once heated, add the spinach, season with salt and toss to combine, allowing the spinach to wilt, about 3 minutes. Set aside.
• For the timballo assembly: Oil a 14-inch cast-iron pan. Add a 1-inch layer of base penne mixture (about 1/3 of the mixture) and flatten. Add half of the fregola/pea mixture and flatten again. Add a layer of the cooked and cooled lasagna sheets to cover. Cover with half of the wilted spinach, half of the roasted red pepper slices and half of the fresh mozzarella slices. Repeat all the layers, finishing with the base penne mixture and garnish with the Parmesan.
• Bake until golden brown and bubbly, about 20 minutes.