This ricotta and marjoram timbale is yet another irresistible version of the ever-reliable baked pasta preparation and one that has Sicilian roots. Casa Planeta, an esteemed Sicilian winery, boasts a kitchen that tells the story of a family and of a land and its (still-preserved) fusion of influences from different cultures. The cuisine couples the refined art of the Monsù, the chefs who trained in France (Monsù is an abbreviation of monsieur) and cooked for the nobility during the 19th century, with rural culture.
This recipe appears in the book “Sicily - La Cucina di Casa Planeta,” written by Elisa Menduni. This journey through a hundred recipes comes from the handwritten notebooks of the women involved in the winery. From their intimate and humble ways of cooking to influences from old-fashioned nobility dishes, this collection of recipes paints a picture of the daily life and the culinary culture of the territories from which Casa Planeta produces wine and oil: Vittoria, Noto, Etna, and Capo Milazzo.
The book is in Italian, and we couldn't resist translating one of the recipes to share with you. And if you'd like a wine pairing, the book suggests Sicilia Menfi DOC Chardonnay.
The Recipe: Ricotta and Marjoram Timbale
Ingredients:
For the ricotta paste:
1½ lb. ricotta
3 oz. butter
3 oz. lard
4½ oz. sugar
4½ oz. flour
2 large egg yolks
For the filling:
1 lb. pasta
2 oz. peas
11 oz. chicken breast
5 oz. prosciutto cotto (cooked prosciutto) or ham
4 oz. chicken giblets
4 cups meat stock
4 oz. all-purpose flour
fresh marjoram to taste
vegetable broth
Syrah wine
Marsala to taste
1 Tbsp. butter
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Method:
Cut the prosciutto cotto or ham into strips.
Bring a pot of water to a boil. Cook the chicken breast and giblets, then cover them in flour. Fry everything in a pan with a knob of butter and extra-virgin olive oil.
First, add the Syrah and let it evaporate, then do the same with the Marsala. Finally, add the vegetable broth and continue cooking.
Remove the chicken and cut it into very small pieces. Add it to the sauce, followed by peas, marjoram, and prosciutto. Cook the pasta until very al dente, season it with the chicken sauce, and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Combine all of the ingredients listed under “ricotta paste” into a dough. In a well-buttered and floured baking pan, spread the dough along the sides and bottom of the pan. Fill it with pasta, and then cover the timbale with more dough. Bake in the oven for 1 hour.
This article was originally published in June 2020 and has been updated.