Servings: 10
Ingredients
- 1 kg mezze maniche pasta or rigatoni
- 2 medium size eggplant, peeled and cut into medium dice.
- 2 medium sizes zucchini cut into medium dice
- 2 red peppers roasted in the barbeque or in the oven and peeled.
- 1 butternut squash
- 5 med size garlic sausages casing removed.
- 5 gr maple syrup
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 medium white onion finely diced
- 1 large jar of passata di pomodoro
- 2 anchovies filets
- 300 gr pecorino Toscano grated
- Extra virgin olive oil to taste
- 2 gr saffron
- ½ bunch fresh basil leaves
- ½ bunch fresh Italian parsley leaves.
- 50 gr of toasted pine nuts.
- 1 l litre milk
- 30 gr unsalted butter
- 30 gr flour
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Grated nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat the oven at 375 degrees F
- Cut the butternut squash in half, keep one half on the side, the other side season with salt pepper drizzle some olive oil and maple syrup and set it on a roasted tray and cover with aluminum foil and bake until fork-tender.
- In a medium skillet add some olive oil and start to sauté the eggplant, season with salt and pepper and cook until golden brown.
- Remove them from the skillet and transfer to a plate lined with paper towels
- Repeat the same process with the zucchini.
- Heat medium size sauce pot and drizzle a small amount of olive oil, add the garlic cloves finely sliced and the onion and sweat until translucent.
- Add the anchovy’s filets with the onion and garlic and the garlic sausages without the casing and cook until all the sausages' fat has been adsorbed.
- Add the passata di pomodoro and cook for approximately 30 minutes, making sure not to boil too fast, adjust seasoning and set aside.
- Peel the roasted pepper and cut in medium dice and set in a bowl, drizzle some olive oil, salt, pepper, half of the basil and parsley leaves tear apart by hand and set aside.
- In a medium saucepot, bring the milk to a boil with the grated nutmeg, salt and saffron threads and keep warm.
- In a second pot melt the butter and then add the flour (you are making a roux) cook for approximately 2 to 3 minutes, as we want to cook the flour out.
- Add the roux to the warm milk and stir consistently with a whisk ensuring you remove all the lumps.
- Cook the béchamel for 10 minutes making sure you reach a nice thick consistency.
- Add to the béchamel the pulp of the roasted butternut and mix properly and set aside
- In a skillet toast gently the pine nuts and cook the mezze maniche in a pot of salted boiling water. Cook the pasta al dente.
- Grease a Pyrex, in a large bowl mix the mezze maniche with half of the tomato and sausage sauce and half of the squash béchamel, the roasted eggplant, zucchini, red peppers and the remaining of the basil and parsley leaves and half of the grated pecorino Toscano cheese, adjust the seasoning if needed.
- Put one large tablespoon of each tomato sauce and béchamel in the bottom of the Pyrex. Add the pasta making sure it is properly spread out.
- Cover with remaining tomato sauce and béchamel and toasted pine nuts.
- With the remaining half squash, my recommendation is to juice it and add the liquid juice on top of the pasticcio evenly (it will keep your pasticcio moist and flavorful)
- Sprinkle remaining pecorino Toscano and bake on a preheated 375 degrees oven and bake covered with aluminum foil for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes remove the paper and allow the top to be nice and golden, but still very moist.
- Allow resting 10 minutes before serving it.
Video
Notes
Wine Pairing – Sauvignon Blanc
Juice Pairing – Mint of Cucumber
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