Capellini al Forno

Capellini al forno: the triangle-shaped wedge covered in marinara

I served this at our holiday progressive dinner party and oh my God, it's amazing.  It's a recipe from Giada de Laurentis, and it's like a noodle cake sorta: you take capellini/angel hair pasta, mix it with cheese, eggs, and herbs, then smush it in a 9" springform pan, layered with proccuito and mozzarella cheese.

This is a great side dish for company because it's not super tricky to make, and I made it ahead of time, baked it, then stored it in the refrigerator.  I just warmed it through while the beef was baking.  Also, it's kinda dramatic...pasta that's in cake form?  I'm pretty sure your guests will love it.

Capellini al Forno
Recipe from Giada de Laurentis

6 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 pound capellini (angel hair pasta)
1 cup plus 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
3 eggs at room temperature, beaten
3/4 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 Tbsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 cup plain breadcrumbs
8-10 slices proccuito, diced
2 cups shredded mozzarella
1 jar marinara sauce, warmed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9" springform pan, then dust the bottom with breadcrumbs to coat.  Cook capellini 4-5 minutes and drain.  In a large bowl, mix together eggs, 1 cup parmesan, parsley, salt and pepper.  Toss in all the pasta and mix well.  Layer 1/3 pasta mixture into the springform pan, top with 1/2 the proccuito and 1/2 the mozzarella.  Add another 1/3 of the pasta and press down gently to pack in the filling.  Sprinkle with 1/4 cup breadcrumbs, the rest of the proccuito and mozzarella, and the rest of the pasta.

Mix remaining breadcrumbs with remaining 1/2 cup parmesan cheese and sprinkle on top to cover the pasta.  Dot the top with remaining 2 Tbsp butter, and bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes or until top is golden brown.  Let cool 10 minutes, take out of springform and place on serving platter.  Serve with warm marinara