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Timballo di Zucchine

In the book Il Gattopardo (The Leopard), Giuesppe Lampedusa describes a fantastic dinner where the centerpiece is a timballo (a mold) filled with meat, cheeses, spices and and pasta all encased in a drum of pastry. This recipe replaces pastry dough with zucchini, a staple vegetable of the Sicilian diet.  Assembling the timballo is easy when done in stages. Make the sauce several days ahead and cook the marble-size meatballs 2 days ahead. Patience is the key to the un-molding; you will get much neater wedges by allowing the timballo to cool for at least 30 minutes – and the joy of tasting that first forkful will make all the effort worthwhile.

Ingredients

  • For the mold
  • Butter
  • 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
  • Tomato Sauce
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped onions
  • 1 riib celery, finely chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 5 cups chopped fresh or canned (drained) plum tomatoes (about 10 medium size)
  • 1/4 cup dry red wine
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • Filling
  • 3 large zucchini (each at least 8" long)
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 2 tsp roasted garlic salt
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/2 lb bucatini or spaghetti
  • 1/4 lb ground pork
  • 1/2 lb ground beef
  • 1 large egg, slightly beaten
  • 2 tsp dry white wine
  • 2 tbsp grated Pecorino cheese
  • 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 cup fresh mozzarella cheese cut into small pieces
  • 1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley leaves

Directions

  1. Butter a 9 x 3 1/2-inch deep springform pan and coat the inside evenly with the 1/2 cup breadcrumbs. Shake out the excess crumbs and refrigerate the pan until ready to fill. 


  2. In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil and cook, stirring, the onions, carrot, and celery until they soften. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until the garlic softens. Stir in the tomatoes, red wine, and bay leaf. Cover the pan and simmer the sauce for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and set aside. Remove the bay leaf before using.
  3. Cook the bucatini until al dente. Drain and transfer to a large bowl. Set aside.
  4. Brush two baking sheets with olive oil and set side.
  5. Preheat oven to 350F
  6. Cut off and discard the stems of the zucchini. Slice it lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices.
  7. Combine the salt, black pepper, roasted garlic salt and oregano in a rectangular baking dish.
  8. Season the slices of zucchini with the salt, black pepper, roasted garlic salt and oregano and place the slices on the baking sheets in single layers.
  9. Bake the slices until they are soft but not mushy and set aside to cool for 15 minutes.
  10. Line the spring form pan with the zucchini slices, draping them lengthwise and overlapping them up the sides of the pan. There should be about a 3-inch overhang over the top edges. Make sure there are no open spots in the base of the pan it should be completely lined with the slices. Fill in the bottom with smaller pieces if you need to.
  11. In a medium-size bowl, combine the pork, beef, egg, wine, 2 tablespoons grated Pecorino cheese, breadcrumbs, and salt. Mix gently to just combine the ingredients.
  12. Form marble-sized meatballs with your hands and place themmon the baking trays used to bake the zucchini. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until they begin to brown. Transfer the meatballs to the bowl with the bucatini. Add the mozzarella, parsley, and 2 cups of the tomato sauce. Stir to combine the ingredients well and set aside.
  13. Spoon the bucatini mixture evenly into the springform pan, packing it down with a wooden spoon all the way around. Fold the overhanging slices of zucchjni in towards the center of the pan; the mixture should be completely encased by zucchini.

  14. Spread 1/2 cup of the remaining tomato sauce over the top of the mold and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 45 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle on the remaining cheese and bake an additional 10 minutes.
  15. When the timballo shrinks a bit along the sides and a knife will easily move along the sides, remove it from the oven and let stand covered for 30 minutes.


  16. Remove the foil from the timballo and run a butter knife around the inside edges to loosen it. Un-latch and carefully remove the side. Place the timballo on a serving dish. Cut it into wedges and serve with additional sauce on the side.
  17. Caution: un-latching the timballo too soon will cause it to collapse.
  18. Even better cooked two days ahead of time; cut while cold and reheated until hot.
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