Curiously enough, manicotti seems to be missing from Italian cooking traditions. We’ve never seen it on a restaurant menu, never encountered a recipe in an Italian cookbook, never been served manicotti in an Italian home. But it was one of the first truly Italian dishes Nancy ever had, in little restaurants in Boston’s North End where even students could afford the prices. We may have been underage, but the proprietors of these places took pity on us and cheerfully served us something they called Chianti that came in raffia-wrapped bottles. It was as close as we could get to Italy itself, and if the cucina was not as genuina as it would be in the mother country, we were sufficiently versed in Italian films to pretend we were Marcello Mastroianni and Monica Vitti. At least for one evening.
Manicotti are hollow tubes about four inches long and an inch in diameter, large enough for filling with a delicious mix of cheeses. They usually come in half-pound boxes that contain fourteen shells or tubes. Barilla makes them, but if you can’t find manicotti, use instead lasagna sheets, either dried or freshly made, cut to the right size. In fact the sheets are easier since you can simply pipe the filling down the middle of the cooked pasta sheet, then roll the sides around it.
The manicotti should be cooked just before they are to be filled. Filling the shells is easy with a pastry bag. Be sure to have the tomato sauce ready before you boil the manicotti.
SERVES 4 TO 6
½ cup freshly grated Asiago cheese
½ cup freshly grated aged pecorino
½ pound mozzarella, freshly grated
1 pound fresh ricotta
¼ cup coarsely chopped walnuts
2 or 3 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley or basil
1 garlic clove, finely minced
3 large eggs
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
One 8-ounce (250 grams) package manicotti shells (14 shells)
6 cups tomato sauce (here)
½ to ¾ cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano
2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
Bring 5 to 6 quarts of water to a rolling boil in a large pot.
While the water is heating, prepare the filling: Mix together the Asiago, pecorino, half the mozzarella, and all the ricotta cheese and fold in the walnuts, parsley, and garlic. Beat the eggs together with a fork, then fold them into the cheese mixture. Add a pinch of salt and plenty of pepper and set aside.
When the water has reached a rolling boil, add a spoonful of salt and tip in the manicotti shells. Bring back to a boil and let cook for just about 5 minutes, or until the manicotti are supple enough to fill but by no means cooked through. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside on kitchen towels to drain.
Set the oven on 375ºF. Using a little oil, oil the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Spread half the tomato sauce over the bottom of the dish.
Using a teaspoon or a pastry bag, fill the manicotti tubes with several spoonsful of the cheese filling and set them side by side on top of the layer of tomato sauce in the dish. When all the tubes have been filled, spoon the remaining tomato sauce over the top, covering every bit of the pasta. Sprinkle liberally with grated parmigiano and the remaining mozzarella. Dot all over with the butter.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling all around and blistering on top. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.