Pasta Timballo in Progress

Pasta Timballo is an Italian meal that varies from region to region in the use of ingredients and sauces.  Timballos involve several steps of preparation to achieve a baked “pie” that includes pasta, rice or potatoes as a base, using cheese and/or eggs as a binder to hold it all together.  Often, the timballo is moistened and flavored with a Bolognese sauce or béchamel sauce or in this case both! The Timballo is similar to the bomba or a pasticcio (which is baked in a pastry crust), or even an English casserole (but saying so could start a culinary feud of sorts).  I am not posting the recipe to this one just yet because it is a recipe in progress.

A timbale or timballo can also be wrapped in thinly sliced vegetables like eggplant or zucchini for a presentation that is a bit more formal.

This one, however, is penne pasta in a tomato-wine sauce with poached, shredded chicken.  The tomato chicken sauce coats the first layer of pasta, and then a béchamel sauce including spinach and winter flavoring is added.  One more layer of tomato-chicken sauce goes atop the spinach-béchamel layer and the whole casserole binds together with shredded Provolone, cubed Mozzarella, eggs lightly beaten and a good handful of Parmesan cheese.

To finish the timballo crust, panko breadcrumbs and Italian seasoning dust the pan and the top of the casserole.

Serve with a light, fruity wine and some bread on the side to max out your carb allotment for the week!  Buon Appetito!

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