I truly believe an adventurous cook needs to make timballo at least once in his or her life. A recipe made famous by the one and only Stanley Tucci in 

, this timballo (or timpano, where it's called in southern Italy and where Tucci's family is from) recipe is the definition of a labor of love. Homemade Italian tomato sauce, meatballs, and sausages simmer while the eggs boil, the dough is kneaded, and the pasta is cooked. As an Italian, watching 

 for the first time many years ago is a very special memory for me. Not really ever seeing Italian Americans portrayed on the big screen without mobsters or gangsters with horrible Italian accents as the main characters, this movie made me proud. Proud because it portrayed Italians as I have always known them to be: passionate about family and food. Once the movie was over, one thing was clear: My family was going to make timballo. We made it and enjoyed it, feeling proud of our roots and the magnificent food brought here to the United States by Italians. This recipe includes my mother’s delicious tomato sauce and meatballs that simmer to cook up to perfection and are delicious all on their own! You can find these recipes in the 

 cookbook. I also decided to veer a bit and create a pastry crust instead of a pasta liner for the dish as I didn’t want a pasta crust for the pasta dish. (Traditionally the crust is homemade lasagna sheets.) So roll up your sleeves, set aside a Sunday morning, and make timballo. I also suggest playing some Louie Prima records while you do. Not necessary, but highly recommended!

Timballo Genovese (Timpano)

Spaghetti and meatballs doesn't have to be a meal that you slave over and simmer all day, nor does it need to put you into hibernation once you've eaten it. You can mix, shape, and fry these meatballs in exactly the time it takes for 

Marcella Hazan's tomato, butter, and onion sauce

, if you're really fast). The caveats: 1. Make your own fresh breadcrumbs (i.e., grind up some stale bread) or, if your crumbs are purchased and quite fine, cut back by half, and don't use quite as much water. I can't be responsible for your stiff, mealy dumpling-balls if you don't heed this. 2. Use local, pastured, not very lean meats if at all possible. Good flavor and fat go a long way here. 

Le Creuset Enameled Cast Iron Signature Sauteuse

Five Two Double-Sided Bamboo Cutting Board

Rao's Meatballs

I love marsala.  I want to bring marsala home to meet my parents, but only to special occasions like Thanksgiving and Easter. Not to the everyday dinners and foibles of a family.   
When I was grocery shopping, I found ground veal on sale. It was such a good price that I couldn’t pass it up. But I was at a loss for what to make with it. That’s when I thought – Meatballs! This recipe makes a great weeknight meal that feels a little fancy. It’s the makeover movie for unlocking ground veal’s hidden beauty – with marsala! - KaffeAndKuchen

Veal Marsala Meatballs

There are several things about this dish I really like.  The stuffing is mature.  What do I mean by that?  Well, for me, most stuffing I eat reminds me of being a kid and is to a certain degree, kid friendly.  This stuffing while kid friendly lends a mature flavor to the entire dish.  I also like the fact that the turkey only takes about 45 minutes to bake unlike a whole stuffed bird.  The marsala sauce is rich in that wonderful raisiny way marsala is but when combined with the little hits of currant in the stuffing, the garlic and green onions is is sublime.  I would shy away from mashed potatoes as a side dish for this.  I think they would just be cloying while a simple noodle, nothing heavy,  would be delicious. 

Stuffed Turkey Breast Marsala (or Poor Man's Veal)

Everyone seems to have their own spin on how to make bolognese. My version is based on the ragu used in Bologna to make traditional lasagna bolognese. The longer you can slowly simmer this sauce, the better it will taste. I use a mix of ground beef, pork, and veal in my bolognese (although you can certainly experiment with whatever combination of ground meat you want). The true secret ingredient here is the bouquet garni containing a parm rind and prosciutto scraps. You might be able to obtain free prosciutto scraps by going to any store where they slice prosciutto to order and asking what they do with the stump of the leg when it gets too small to slice. Some stores will simply give you that prosciutto stump for free.

My Favorite Bolognese

One of my favorite dinner party dishes is this 

, which is stuffed zucchini filled with a mixture of meat (veal, bread crumbs, Parmigiano-Reggiano, spices, and egg) that could easily substitute for meatballs. When making this dish, you hollow out the center of the zucchini and season the inside with salt. Then, you’ll stuff the zucchini with the meat mix and simmer it in a garlicky tomato sauce until everything is nice and tender. If you’re serving a crowd, you can also set aside the cored zucchini (there's no sense in wasting it) and add it to this 

 made with Pecorino, guanciale, and black pepper. 

When I First Moved to Rome, I Found the Sunday Dinners I Never Had

Stuffed Zucchini Simmered in Tomato Sauce (Zucchine Ripiene alla Romana)

How much fennel can be packed into one pasta dish? A lot, apparently! I used the fennel bulb, fennel fronds, and fennel seeds. The resulting dish is simple to make, but quite flavorful and springy.

Rigatoni with Fennel and Veal Sausage 


There are endless recipes for scallopini but my favorite is a classic 5-minute lemon & parsley pan sauce.  Scallopini  refers to meat that has been pounded thin & coated with flour. You can use veal, chicken, turkey or pork loin and in about 5 minutes make scallopini with capers or porcini mushrooms or marsala or olives & tomatoes or green pepper corns, the list goes on!

Adjust it with the seasons - light & fresh in the summer with lemon & parsley or porcini mushrooms in the fall for a heartier dish. Thinly sliced veal can be bought at any market, let your butcher know what your making so they can make the proper cut.

Two to three slices of melt in your mouth veal in the pan with a little salad or roasted potatoes with rosemary can be a fabulous quick dinner any night of the week!

Veal Scallopine with Lemon & Parsley 

My Butcher had the most amazingly gorgeous veal chops yesterday, so I veered from my original Mozzarella recipe idea and headed straight to this one. Thinking about saltimbocca and about sage and how beautifully sage plays against mozzarella, I came up with this idea on the bus.  I used fresh made mozzarella from Claudios, here in Philly. The ones I made last night would have been a wee bit better had they marinated longer, I added that to the recipe.  I served it with a salad of the cherry tomatoes, radicchio and grilled zucchini fresh form the farmers market ( god I love this season!) I think it would also be lovely over some sage scented white beans or Amanda's crispy potatoes. If you are not a veal eating type person, this would do just as well with chicken breast or pork chop. Sorry for the awful pic, soon as I clear the disk from the camera I'll stop posting these awful phone pics. - Aliwaks

Veal Chops with Mozzerella, Sage & Proscuitto

This is based on the simple preparation of the Italian trattoria dish of the same name.  I like to use the stack and wrap method, as I call it,  just to give the veal a little more time to absorb the flavors I want to pair with it.  In this case the thyme and lemon.  Maybe the hardest part about this is waiting for the grill to heat but I have never found that to be too trying as long as a nice chilled bottle of rose from Provence is on hand.  This is a direct heat method of grilling where the hotter the grill the better.  I really like to serve this dish with a whole head of roasted garlic for each diner so they can smear it onto the chop if desired. - thirschfeld

Veal Chops Lombatina with Roasted Garlic

There is nothing better than succulent bone marrow, pulled straight from the bone and spread warm on toast or thick bread.  I like to sprinkle a little good salt on top (fleur de sel or my current favorite Himalayan Pink Sea Salt) before eating.  The following recipe is one we make at home a lot and is great for a cold winter-y day.  The beef and veal shank soup is a nice consequence of the cooking process for the bone marrow.  

Bone Marrow on Toast - Beer Beef & Veal Shank Soup (as an afterthought)

Most pork confit recipes require a brine or dry rub for the pork before slow cooking it in its own fat.  This recipe skips that step and ensures delectable flavor and tenderness by cooking it low and slow in duck fat. Duck fat is so wonderfully flavorful- why not skip the brine/rub, save time and enjoy decadent simplicity!
I serve this to rave reviews alongside a simple lentil salad or root vegetable puree. Make enough to ensure that you have leftovers. Pork confit makes to-die-for tacos!


Pork Confit with Cider Veal Reduction

This may also be made with pork chops. Look for nice fatty ones and brine them before cooking.

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