Recipe VIDEO above. Juicy, perfectly seasoned spinach and ricotta filling inside cannelloni pasta tubes, topped with a simple, tasty tomato sauce and melted cheese. Great for freezing!First published in September 2017, this reader favourite recipe is included by popular demand in my debut cookbook Dinner. I took the opportunity to make it even better by increasing the volume and thinning the thickness of the sauce so there's plenty of liquid to cook the cannelloni but it's still saucy when you serve it up. It was great before, it's AMAZING now!
View original recipe on recipetineats.comSauté - Heat oil in a small pot over medium high heat. Add garlic, onion, bay leaf, thyme and oregano. Cook for 3 - 4 minutes until the onion is translucent. Add tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.
Reduce wine - Add wine, increase heat to high and let it simmer rapidly until mostly evaporated (about 2 minutes).
Simmer - Add tomatoes, stock, sugar, salt and pepper. Stir then simmer on medium low for 20 minutes.
Blitz - Remove bay leaf then blitz with a stick blender until smooth. Simmer for 1 more minute then remove from the stove
Basil - Stir in basil then cover to keep warm until required.
Squeeze spinach - Place spinach in a colander and press out most of the liquid (don't need to thoroughly squeeze dry).
Mix filling - Place Spinach in bowl with remaining Filling ingredients. Mix, taste, adjust salt and pepper to taste (different cheeses have different saltiness).
Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan).
Pan - Choose a baking pan which will comfortably fit about 20 cannelloni - mine is 21 x 26 cm / 8.5 x 10.5".
Smear - Spread 1 cup of Sauce on the base (stops cannelloni from sliding around).
Fill tubes - Transfer Filling to a piping bag with a large nozzle (that fits in the tubes), or use a strong ziplock bag. Or do this step using a knife (it's a bit tedious though!). Pipe the filling into the tubes.
Assemble - Place cannelloni in baking dish. Pour over remaining Sauce, covering all the tubes.
Bake covered (but naked) - Cover with foil, then bake for 30 minutes.
Cheese it! Remove foil, scatter over parmesan then mozzarella. Return to oven for 15 minutes until cheese is melted.
Serve, garnished with extra parmesan and basil if desired.
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