Timballo Di Melanzane e Bucatini

Prepare a marinara sauce with red wine ahead of time. First, prepare the eggplant. Cut off stems of the eggplants and discard. Slice the eggplant lengthwise into 1/4 inch thick slices. Salt and layer the eggplant slices in water on top of the slices to act as a weight. Let the eggplant "sweat" for at least 1 hour to remove excess water. Butter a 9 x 3 1/2 inch-deep round mold or cake pan and coat the inside evenly with the 1/2 cup breadcrumbs. Warm the pre-made tomato sauce. Cook the bucatini according to the directions. Drain and transfer to a large bowl and set aside. In a medium bowl, combine veal, egg, white wine, 2 tbs of Pecorino cheese, breadcrumbs and salt. Mix gently to combine the ingredients. For marble-size meatballs with your hands. Heat the butter in a large skillet and fry the meatballs until browned on all sides. Transfer the meatballs to the bowl with the bucatini. Add the mozarella, parsley, and 2 cups of the tomato sauce. Stir to combine the ingredients well and set aside. Note: Instead of frying, bake them on a lightly greased cookie sheet at 350 degrees until nicely browned, about 20 minutes. Rinse and dry the eggplant slices. Heat the peanut oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the eggplant slices a few at a time until they soften, about 2 minutes on each side. Drain the slices on brown paper. Use additional oil if the pan seems dry. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line the prepared mold with the eggplant sauces, draping them lenghtwise over the bottom and the overlapping them up the sides of the mold. There should be about a 3-inch overhang over the top of the edges of the mold. Make sure there are no open spots and that the mold is completely lined with the slices. Spoon the bucatini mixture evenly in the old, packing it down with a wooden spoon all the way around. Fold the overhanging slices of eggplant in over the top of the mold; the mixture should be completely encased by the eggplant. Spread 1/2 cup of the remaining tomato sauce over the top of the mold and sprinkle with the 1/4 cup Pecorino. Bake the timballo, uncovered, for 45 minutes. It is done when the timballo shrinks a bit along the sides and a knife will easily move along the sides. Remove the old from the oven and loosely cover the top with sheet of aluminum foil. Let the mold stand for 20 minutes. Heat the remaining sauce. Remove the foil from the timballo and run a butter knife around the inside edges to loosen it. Place a serving dish larger than the mold over the top and carefully invert it onto the dish. Cut the timballo into wedges and serve with additional sauce on top or on the side.