Ingredients:
FOR THE DOUGH:
4 cups all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup water
TO PREPARE THE PAN:
Butter Olive oil
FOR THE FILLING:
2 cups 1/4 x 1/2-inch Genoa salami pieces
2 cups 1/4 x 1/2-inch sharp provolone cheese cubes
12 hard-boiled eggs, peeled, cut in 1/4's lengthwise, then cut in 1/2 to create chunks
2 cups little meatballs
8 cups Ragu Tucci (Meat-Based Tomato Sauce Tucci-Style) recipe follows
3 pounds ziti, cooked very al dente (about half the time recommended on the package) and drained (18 cups cooked)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2/3 cup finely grated pecorino Romano cheese
4 large eggs, beaten
Directions:
To make the dough, place the flour, eggs, salt, and olive oil in a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. (A large capacity food processor may also be used.) Add 3 tablespoons of the water and process. Add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the mixture comes together and forms a ball. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead to make sure it is well mixed. Set aside to rest for 5 minutes. (To knead the dough by hand, mix the flour and salt together on a clean, dry work surface or pastry board. Form these dry ingredients into a mound and then make a well in the center. Break the eggs into the center of the well and lightly beat them with a fork. Stir in 3 tablespoons of the water. Use the fork to gradually incorporate some of the dry ingredients into the egg mixture. Continue mixing the dry ingredients into the eggs, adding the remaining water 1 tablespoon at a time. Knead the dough with your hands to make a well-mixed, smooth, dry dough. If the dough becomes too sticky, add more flour. Set aside to rest for 5 minutes.)
Flatten the dough out on a lightly floured work surface. Dust the top of the dough with flour and roll it out, dusting with flour and flipping the dough over from time to time, until it is about 1/16 inch thick and is the desired diameter. Generously grease the timpano baking pan with butter and olive oil. Fold the dough in half and then in half again, to form a triangle, and place it in the pan. Open the dough and arrange it in the pan, gently pressing it against the bottom and the sides, draping the extra dough over the sides. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
To prepare the filling, have the salami, provolone, hard-boiled eggs, meatballs, and ragu at room temperature. Toss the drained pasta with the olive oil and 2 cups of the ragu. Distribute 6 generous cups of the pasta on the bottom of the timpano. Top with 1 cup of the salami, 1 cup of the provolone, 6 of the hard-boiled eggs, 1 cup of the meatballs, and 1/3 cup of the Romano cheese. Pour 2 cups of the ragu over these ingredients. Top with 6 cups of the remaining pasta. Top that with the remaining 1 cup salami, 1 cup provolone, 6 hard-boiled eggs, 1 cup meatballs, and 1/3 cup Romano cheese. Pour 2 cups of the ragu of over these ingredients. top with the remaining 2 cups ragu over the pasta. Pour the beaten eggs over the filling. Fold the pasta dough over the filling to seal completely. Trim away and discard any double layers of dough.
Bake until lightly browned, about 1 hour. Then cover with aluminum foil and continue baking until the timpano is cooked through and the dough is golden brown (and reaches an internal temperature of 120 degrees F), about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 30 or more minutes. The baked timpano should not adhere to the pan. If any part is still attached, carefully detach with a knife. Grasp the baking pan firmly and invert the timpano onto a serving platter. Remove the pan and allow the timpano to cool for 20 minutes. Using a long, sharp knife, cut a circle about 3 inches in diameter in the center of the timpano, making sure to cut all the way through to the bottom. Then slice the timpano as you would a pie into individual portions, leaving the center circle as a support for the remaining pieces.
FOR THE DOUGH:
4 cups all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup water
TO PREPARE THE PAN:
Butter Olive oil
FOR THE FILLING:
2 cups 1/4 x 1/2-inch Genoa salami pieces
2 cups 1/4 x 1/2-inch sharp provolone cheese cubes
12 hard-boiled eggs, peeled, cut in 1/4's lengthwise, then cut in 1/2 to create chunks
2 cups little meatballs
8 cups Ragu Tucci (Meat-Based Tomato Sauce Tucci-Style) recipe follows
3 pounds ziti, cooked very al dente (about half the time recommended on the package) and drained (18 cups cooked)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2/3 cup finely grated pecorino Romano cheese
4 large eggs, beaten
Directions:
To make the dough, place the flour, eggs, salt, and olive oil in a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. (A large capacity food processor may also be used.) Add 3 tablespoons of the water and process. Add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the mixture comes together and forms a ball. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead to make sure it is well mixed. Set aside to rest for 5 minutes. (To knead the dough by hand, mix the flour and salt together on a clean, dry work surface or pastry board. Form these dry ingredients into a mound and then make a well in the center. Break the eggs into the center of the well and lightly beat them with a fork. Stir in 3 tablespoons of the water. Use the fork to gradually incorporate some of the dry ingredients into the egg mixture. Continue mixing the dry ingredients into the eggs, adding the remaining water 1 tablespoon at a time. Knead the dough with your hands to make a well-mixed, smooth, dry dough. If the dough becomes too sticky, add more flour. Set aside to rest for 5 minutes.)
Flatten the dough out on a lightly floured work surface. Dust the top of the dough with flour and roll it out, dusting with flour and flipping the dough over from time to time, until it is about 1/16 inch thick and is the desired diameter. Generously grease the timpano baking pan with butter and olive oil. Fold the dough in half and then in half again, to form a triangle, and place it in the pan. Open the dough and arrange it in the pan, gently pressing it against the bottom and the sides, draping the extra dough over the sides. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
To prepare the filling, have the salami, provolone, hard-boiled eggs, meatballs, and ragu at room temperature. Toss the drained pasta with the olive oil and 2 cups of the ragu. Distribute 6 generous cups of the pasta on the bottom of the timpano. Top with 1 cup of the salami, 1 cup of the provolone, 6 of the hard-boiled eggs, 1 cup of the meatballs, and 1/3 cup of the Romano cheese. Pour 2 cups of the ragu over these ingredients. Top with 6 cups of the remaining pasta. Top that with the remaining 1 cup salami, 1 cup provolone, 6 hard-boiled eggs, 1 cup meatballs, and 1/3 cup Romano cheese. Pour 2 cups of the ragu of over these ingredients. top with the remaining 2 cups ragu over the pasta. Pour the beaten eggs over the filling. Fold the pasta dough over the filling to seal completely. Trim away and discard any double layers of dough.
Bake until lightly browned, about 1 hour. Then cover with aluminum foil and continue baking until the timpano is cooked through and the dough is golden brown (and reaches an internal temperature of 120 degrees F), about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 30 or more minutes. The baked timpano should not adhere to the pan. If any part is still attached, carefully detach with a knife. Grasp the baking pan firmly and invert the timpano onto a serving platter. Remove the pan and allow the timpano to cool for 20 minutes. Using a long, sharp knife, cut a circle about 3 inches in diameter in the center of the timpano, making sure to cut all the way through to the bottom. Then slice the timpano as you would a pie into individual portions, leaving the center circle as a support for the remaining pieces.
Ragu Tucci
Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
1 pound stewing beef, trimmed of fat, rinsed, patted dry, and cut into pieces
1 pound country-style spareribs, trimmed of fat, cut in half, rinsed, and patted dry
1 cup roughly chopped onions
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 cup dry red wine
One 6-ounce can tomato paste
1 1/2 cups warm water
8 cups canned whole plum tomatoes (about two 35-ounce cans), passed through a food mill or pureed in the blender
3 fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
1/4 cup olive oil
1 pound stewing beef, trimmed of fat, rinsed, patted dry, and cut into pieces
1 pound country-style spareribs, trimmed of fat, cut in half, rinsed, and patted dry
1 cup roughly chopped onions
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 cup dry red wine
One 6-ounce can tomato paste
1 1/2 cups warm water
8 cups canned whole plum tomatoes (about two 35-ounce cans), passed through a food mill or pureed in the blender
3 fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
Directions:
Warm the olive oil in a stew pot set over medium-high heat, sear the stewing beef until brown on all sides, about 10 minutes. Remove from the pot and set aside in a bowl. Add the spareribs to the pot and sear until they are brown on all sides, about 10 minutes. Remove the ribs and set aside in the bowl with the stewing beef. (If your pot is big enough to hold all of the meat in a single layer, it may be cooked at the same time.)
Stir the onions and garlic into the pot. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the onions begin to soften and lose their shape, about 5 minutes. Stir in the wine, scraping the bottom of the pot clean. Add the tomato paste. Pour 1/2 cup of the warm water into the can to loosen any residual paste and then pour the water into the pot. Cook to warm the paste through, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes along with the remaining 1 cup warm water. Stir in the basil and oregano. Cover with the lid slightly askew and simmer to sweeten the tomatoes, about 30 minutes. Return the meat to the pot, along with any juices that have accumulated in the bowl. Cover with the lid slightly askew and simmer, stirring frequently, until the meat is very tender and the tomatoes are cooked, about 2 hours. Warm water may be added to the sauce, in 1/2-cup portions, if the sauce becomes too thick. (If you have made meatballs, they may be added during the last half hour of cooking. The meatballs will soften and absorb some of the sauce.)
NOTE: When preparing ragu for timpano only the sauce is used and the meat is served as a separate course. The sauce for timpano should be thin, so measure out 7 1/2 cups of prepared sauce and stir in 1/2 cup water before proceeding with the timpano recipe.
VARIATION: Sweet Italian sausage may be added to this sauce. Sauté it after the spareribs and then proceed with the recipe as written
