Recipe - Pasta Incaciata Baked Pasta Wrapped In Eggplant Slices

1 Eggplants; (1 One half pound)
1 One half teaspoon Salt
3 tablespoon Olive oil

B‚CHAMEL SAUCE
3 cup Milk
3 tablespoon Butter
3 tablespoon Four
1/8 teaspoon Nutmeg

FILLING
3 qt Water
1 pound Pasta penne or ziti
2 tablespoon Olive oil
1/3 cup Italian bread crumbs
4 cup Ragu sauce
Three fourths cup Freshly grated Parmigiano
Reggiano cheese
Three fourths cup Freshly grated Petorino
Romano cheese
Three fourths cup Grated sharp provolone
cheese
1 pound Honeybaked ham; cut into
thin strips

Steps: The day before serving, slice the eggplants lengthwise into 1/4inch
slices. Sprinkle with the salt and lay the slices on top of one another in
1 large colander or in 2 small colanders. Place a dish on top and weight it
down (a large can of tomatoes works well.) Drain for 20 minutes. Dry the
eggplant slices with paper towels. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line
a baking sheet with parchment paper if you're not using a nonstick pan.
Brush the paper and eggplant slices with the olive oil and cook in the over
for 25 minutes, until lightly brown. Set aside.

For The B‚chamel Sauce: Bring the milk to a soft boil in a large saucepan.
In another large saucepan, make a roux by stirring butter and flour over
medium heat until they form a thick paste. Add the nutmeg to the boiling
milk and then pour it, a little at a time, into the warm roux, whisking
vigorously to prevent lumps. When all the milk has been added, continue
whisking over medium heat until the sauce thickens, about 35 minutes. Set
aside.

For the Filling: Bring the water to a boil and cook the pasta until just
tender. Drain well, return to the pot and toss with the 2 tablespoons of
olive oil. Set aside.

To Assemble: Grease a deep 9x17 inch baking dish and coat with the bread
crumbs. Line the pan with the cooked eggplant slices, edgetoedge, and
hanging over the sides of the pan. (It's okay if there are spaces showing
between the slices.) About 9 slices should be enough to cover the dish. Mix
the cooked pasta with 3 cups of the ragu sauce, 1 cup of the b‚chamel sauce
and half of each the cheeses. Stir well. Pour half the pasta mixture into
the prepared dish. Top with the ham, the remaining cheeses, ragu sauce,
b‚chamel sauce and pasta mixture. Fold the eggplant slices over the top and
cover with approximately 5 more slices. Cover the dish with plastic warp
and place a baking sheet on top with 3 large cans to weight it down. Place
in the refrigerator overnight. The day of serving, preheat the oven to 400
degrees f. Remove the plastic wrap, recover the dish of pasta with
aluminum foil and bake for 1 hours. Remove the foil and bake for another 30
minutes. Remove from the oven a! ! nd let rest for 15 minutes. To serve,
invert onto a large serving dish a cut into wedges or thick slices.

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Busted by Barb ob 2/21/98

NOTES : Guilty Pleasures: An Italian Feast Nick Stellino prepares the
decadent Pasta Incaciata, and other Italian specialties:
Recipe by: Cucina Amore

Posted to MCRecipe Digest by "abprice@wf.net" abprice@wf.net on Mar 23,
1998