Ingredients
Sfoglia
- 400 gtipo 00 flour
- 4large eggs
- 1 pinchfine salt
- Semolina, for dusting
Besciamella
- 70 gbutter
- 70 gplain flour
- 1 litrewhole milk
- 1 tspfine salt
- Freshly grated nutmeg
Filling
- 300 gcooked ham, sliced
- 300 gfontina or a young Emmental, sliced thin
- 120 gParmigiano Reggiano, grated
To finish
- 150 mlpassata, or 250 g fresh tomato, cooked down with 1 tbsp oil and a pinch of salt
- 40 gbutter, in flakes
- 40 gParmigiano Reggiano, grated
Directions
- Mound the flour, break in the eggs with the salt, and work to a firm, dry dough. Knead 10 minutes until it is smooth and springs back slowly, then wrap and rest 45 minutes at room temperature.
- Roll the dough by machine or pin into two very thin sheets, about 1 mm, each roughly 30 by 40 cm. You should just be able to read print through them.
- Blanch the sheets 30 seconds in boiling salted water, lift into iced water, then lay flat on damp tea towels and pat dry. Skip this and the nests bake up leathery.
- Make the besciamella: melt the butter, stir in the flour and cook the roux 2 minutes without colour, then add the milk hot, in stages, whisking. Simmer 8–10 minutes until it coats a spoon, season with salt and a good scrape of nutmeg, and cool slightly.
- Spread each pasta sheet with a thin layer of besciamella, keeping back two-thirds for the dish. Lay the ham over it, then the fontina, then a scatter of Parmigiano.
- Roll each sheet up tightly from the long side into a snug cylinder, pressing out air as you go. Chill 20 minutes so it firms and slices cleanly.
- Cut each roll into 4 cm rounds with a sharp thin blade and stand them cut side up, snugly packed, in a buttered baking dish. Each round should look like a coiled nest.
- Spoon the remaining besciamella between and over the nests, dot the passata around in spoonfuls rather than blanketing it, then scatter the Parmigiano and flake over the butter.
- Bake at 190°C (375°F) for 30–35 minutes until the tops are deeply gilded and slightly crisped at the coils and the sauce bubbles at the edges. Rest 15 minutes before serving so the nests hold together on the spoon.
Technique
- The nests must stand tightly packed. A loose dish lets them unroll in the oven and you end up with a lasagne, which is a different animal.
- Chilling the roll before slicing is the single step that separates a clean nest from a squashed one. Twenty minutes in the fridge, or 10 in the freezer.
- This is the celebration first course of San Marino, cooked for feast days and at the Titano restaurants, and it is closely related to the Romagnol rotolo of the surrounding Emilia-Romagna countryside.
- Keep the tomato restrained. Sammarinese nidi are a white dish with tomato as an accent, not a red bake.
Substitutions
- No time for fresh sfoglia? Use 300 g of good dried lasagne sheets, boiled until pliable, overlapped to make a long sheet before rolling.
- Fontina can be replaced by taleggio for a stronger nest, or by a mild provolone.
- Prosciutto crudo in place of cooked ham gives a saltier, more assertive version made in some households.
Variations
- A mushroom and truffle nest, made in autumn when Montefeltro truffles appear.
- A version bound with ricotta and spinach in place of the ham for meat-free feast days.
- Some cooks brown the nests briefly under the grill at the end for extra crisp coils.
History
Swallows’ nests: pasta rolled with ham and cheese, sliced into spirals and baked, a festive dish of Romagna and San Marino.
Frequently asked questions
What is Nidi di rondine?
Nidi di rondine is a main from San Marino: baked ‘swallow’s nest’ pasta rolls with ham, cheese. Swallows’ nests: pasta rolled with ham and cheese, sliced into spirals and baked, a festive dish of Romagna and San Marino.
How long does Nidi di rondine take to make?
Nidi di rondine takes 1 hr of preparation and 40 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated hard to make.
What can I substitute in Nidi di rondine?
Yes, within limits. No time for fresh sfoglia? Use 300 g of good dried lasagne sheets, boiled until pliable, overlapped to make a long sheet before rolling. Fontina can be replaced by taleggio for a stronger nest, or by a mild provolone. Prosciutto crudo in place of cooked ham gives a saltier, more assertive version made in some households.
What is the most important thing to get right in Nidi di rondine?
Spoon the remaining besciamella between and over the nests, dot the passata around in spoonfuls rather than blanketing it, then scatter the Parmigiano and flake over the butter.
