Cannelloni For Supper

I like cannelloni but don’t often cook it. There are no fast ways to fill up all those pasta tubes! And if you make a cheese sauce too it can seem like all too much work. But for some reason it is a really delicious dish. The pasta surrounding the filling and then being covered in a cheesy sauce is undoubtedly a lovely combination.

Cannelloni can seem like too much trouble to cook, but this recipe is quite easy and very delicious!

And once it is in the oven – it bakes while you can get on with something else – like relaxing with a glass of wine!

Meal With Friends

Cannelloni is ideal for an informal Saturday night dinner with friends – or the family. Whenever you decide to have it – it is not the best supper when you want to make a meal in a hurry – so lets just call this slow food – but not so slow it is over complicated. This particular recipe avoids any cooking of a cheese sauce since it uses ricotta cheese instead.

So Many Ways To Cook Pasta

It is of course in many ways similar to lasagna and yet it tastes different. Some might ask what is the point of different pasta shapes when it is all made out of the same stuff.

Of course you can fill the pasta tubes with any filling. Use the basic bolognese sauces from these recipes – whether meat or vegetarian and add a cheese sauce.

For this recipe I decided to try something a little different from the other pasta dishes I have made and away from the standard cannelloni recipe. It also means you don’t have a cheese sauce to make – but just pour chopped tomatoes tomato and ricotta over the prepared cannelloni.

There is quite a lot of vegetable chopping. I don’t know about you but I find slicing and chopping up vegetables is often a pleasant experience – especially if they have come from your garden or a loved local grower! But even if they have come from the supermarket it is still wonderful spending a few minutes with nature’s essential produce. After all where would be without it?

I hope you enjoy this recipe. Do drop by and let me know what you think and of any variations you have tried.

Vegetarian Cannelloni

Delicious pasta supper

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 1 15

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Servings 3

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 small butternut squash
1 carrot
1 courgette
3 pieces frozen spinach
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
250 g ricotta cheese
125 g mozarella cheese
pinch nutmeg
12 cannelloni pasta tubes

Instructions

Peel the butternut squash and chop into small pieces
Heat the oil in a large heavy bottomed saucepan
Add the squash and turn down low
Dice the carrot and add to the pan
Dice the courgette and add to the pan
Add a couple of tablespoons of water
Sweat the vegetables until they start to soften
Add 3/4 of 1 tin of chopped tomatoes
Add the pinch of nutmeg
Continue cooking until vegetables are soft - about 30 minutes
Add a bit more water if it becomes too dry
Add the 1/4 tin of tomatoes to the bottom of a baking dish
Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees C
Using a small spoon, fill each of the pasta tubes with the mix
Place each filled tube in the baking dish
Cover with the ti of tomatoes, spreading evenly
Spread the ricotta cheese over the top
Slice the mozzarella cheese and place over the top
Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes
Serve with a green salad

Keyword supper with friends