The Comfort of Simple Foods – Stuffed Cannelloni

October 31, 2011  •  Pasta & Pizza

My son called me the other day for guidance on how to make stuffed cannelloni. Do I boil the pasta tubes first? Yes, but don’t overcook them. What do I stuff them with? Anything you want, but try some meat and cheese. Do I bake them then? Yes. Actually, all he needed to do was look at the box of cannelloni tubes – there are both meat and cheese stuffing recipes on the back.

It’s rare that either of my boys inspires me to cook something, but I had cannelloni on my mind for a few days after that. My husband loves simple, comfortable pasta dishes like this, and frankly, with my cookbook project he’s been relegated to eating whatever I was testing and photographing that day. Don’t get me wrong, he loved the prosciutto wrapped scallops and the lobster mac and cheese. But there is something comforting in a good old fashioned pan of stuffed cannelloni. So I took a break on Friday night and made him this for dinner. He loved it – and I hope you will too.

5.0 from 1 reviews
Stuffed Cannelloni
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Recipe type: Entree
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 1 pound ground beef, browned
  • 1 pound whole milk ricotta cheese
  • 2 large eggs
  • ½ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
  • 4 cups marinara sauce
  • 8 ounces cannelloni tubes, cooked 1 minute shy of al dente, drained
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, or more to taste
Instructions
  1. Combine cooked ground beef with ricotta, eggs and Parmigiano cheese; stir together. Spoon mixture into a large Ziploc bag and cut a ½ corner off the bag. Spread ¼ of the marinara sauce on the bottom of a13 x 9 inch baking pan. Pipe filling into cook cannelloni tubes and nestle tightly in baking pan. Pour remaining marinara sauce over the top, then sprinkle mozzarella over the top. Bake at 375 degrees for about 30 minutes.
Notes
Alternatively, skip ground beef and mix in 1-2 pounds chopped greens with the ricotta for a vegetarian alternative. If your marinara sauce is quite thick, cover to bake the cannelloni. If it is somewhat thin like mine was, leave it open to bake and the sauce will reduce down and thicken as it cooks. Be sure to watch carefully so that the cheese on the top doesn't burn.

 

Comments

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  1. Lea Ann says:

    I love it when my sons call me for cooking advice. Especially the culinary grad son. I haven’t made stuffed shells in ages. Now thanks to you and your son, it will be on my mind until it’s on our dinner table. 🙂

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