Timpano, also known as timballo, might seem like a strange dish. It’s an Italian meal containing pasta, tomato sauce, cheese, and hard-boiled eggs. The cheese is shaped into a dome, covered in dough, and baked! If you’re wondering where you’ve seen it before, it was likely in Stanley Tucci’s movie Big Night. And now it’s your turn to try it out!
Ingredients: Dough and Tomato Sauce
Ingredients: Dough
- 4 cups (about 1 pound, 1 ounce) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 3 tablespoons tap water
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
Ingredients: Tomato Sauce
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 6 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced (about 1/3 cup)
- 1/4 cup tomato paste (from 1 6-ounce can)
- 2 (28-ounce) cans of whole peeled San Marzano plum tomatoes
- 2 cups tap water
- 2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 (6-inch) basil sprigs (about 1/4 ounce)
Ingredients: Eggplant and Assembly
Ingredients: Broiled Eggplant
- 2 large eggplants, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick rounds
- 4 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Ingredients: Assembly
- 2 pounds of uncooked ziti
- 1 5-ounce package of baby spinach
- 2 tablespoons (1 ounce) unsalted butter, plus more for greasing the pan
- 1 pound pre-grated pecorino Romano cheese (about 4 cups), plus more for serving
- 6 hard-cooked large eggs, peeled and halved lengthwise
- 1 pound sliced provolone cheese (24 slices)
- 1 large garlic clove, grated on a Microplane grater (about 1/2 teaspoon)
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Instructions
First, you’re going to prepare your dough by blending the flour, eggs, water, oil, and salt in a food processor until moist, blended clumps form, and then knead and split it into two. Put the separate portions into pans, cover them in plastic wrap, and chill for at least an hour. While that’s happening, prepare the sauce. Cook the garlic in a large saucepan over medium heat for a couple of minutes. Then add the tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, and juices. Add water, salt, pepper, and basil, and bring the sauce to a boil. Let it simmer until it thickens and the flavors meld well. While the sauce simmers, preheat the oven to broil with a rack around six inches away from the heat. Sprinkle the salt on both sides of the eggplant rounds and put them on baking sheets while they stand at room temperature to get rid of the liquids. Pat them dry, add some olive oil and pepper, and broil them around five to six minutes per side.
Assembling Everything
Cook the pasta according to the al dente instructions. In the last couple of minutes, stir in the spinach. Drain the mix and put it in a large bowl with 1 1/2 cups of the tomato sauce. Grease a large Dutch oven with butter. Roll out the big dough disk and press it into the Dutch oven. Spoon some of the pasta mixture in and sprinkle the cheese on top. Add around 1/3 of the eggplant and the eggs, and then put one cup of the tomato sauce over everything. Repeat the layers two more times, and top everything with the remaining dough. Bake it for around an hour at 350°F and then let it cool for half an hour. Finally, cool the garlic and parsley in a small pan with butter for around a minute, and use it to brush down the timpano.