Best Authentic Manicotti Cannelloni Recipes

SPINACH BEEF CANNELLONI (MANICOTTI)

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large saucepan or pot over medium high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook 2 minutes. Add carrot and celery, cook 5 minutes.
• Add remaining Sauce ingredients then stir. Bring to simmer, lower heat to medium, cover with lid and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Use a stick blender to blitz until smooth (or cool slightly and use blender or food processor). Set aside.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add onion and garlic, cook 2 minutes.
• Add beef and cook, breaking it up as you go, until it all changes from red to brown.
• Stir in spinach, then add crumbled beef cube, Worcestershire sauce, pepper and 1 cup of Cannelloni Sauce. Stir, cook 2 minutes.
• Remove and cool slightly.
• Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F.
• Transfer Beef Filling into a piping bag with a wide nozzle. Stand cannelloni tubes upright in a container, then pipe filling in. (Or do this step with teaspoon/finger/dinner knife!).
• Spread about 1 1/4 cups Sauce in a 23x33cm / 9x13" dish. Lay the cannelloni on top, then pour over remaining Sauce.
• Sprinkle with cheese, loosely cover with foil.
• Bake 25 minutes, remove foil then bake a further 10 minutes until the cheese is bubbly with some golden spots.
• Remove from oven, sprinkle with parsley if using then serve!

MANICOTTI (THREE CHEESE, NO-BOIL PASTA RECIPE)

Steps:

• Place the steamed escarole, endive or spinach into a large bowl, then add the ricotta.
• Add the eggs, grated Parmesan or Pecorino, salt, and pepper and mix well.
• Next, toss in the shredded mozzarella. Mix well.
• You'll already have the tomato sauce from my linked recipe, but here's the trick to not boiling the pasta, adding water to the sauce. I say to use boiling water because I don't want you using hot water from the tap; it needs to be very hot. Put half of the sauce in a bowl (if it's about 1 cup of sauce, add just under 1 cup of very hot/almost boiling water. You can make this watery sauce as you need it so you don't end up watering down too much of the sauce.
• Spread a generous amount of the watery sauce in the bottom of the pan, then start filling the tubes with the filling. As I said above, you can choose to use a piping bag without a tip, but it's really easy to use a small spoon, too. Use both ends to fill the manicotti shells as it's quicker than trying to push the filling all the way to the opposite end.
• Once full, place in the pan. Be sure to place them generously spaced apart as they will grow and spread.
• Once all the manicotti are filled (you may need another small tray if all of the manicotti don't fit (don't attempt to squeeze them in). I put 4 in a separate little dish. Make sure to cover all of the manicotti.
• Add enough watery sauce so that it comes about halfway up the pasta shells. We need this much liquid since the pasta hasn't been boiled (and absorbed the water when cooking). Let the shells rest for about half an hour before baking.
• Cover and bake for about 30 to 35 minutes, until the pasta is ready. You can remove the cover for the last 5 minutes if you like.
• Before serving, add some heated pasta sauce (the original batch, not watered down) to the manicotti. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese and add a sprig of parsley for color, and enjoy!

BEEF-FILLED CANNELLONI (MANICOTTI) IN BéCHAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Cook the dried pasta tubes according to the directions for al dente . Remove the pasta from the water with a slotted spoon and lay the pieces on a damp kitchen cloth; don't let them touch to avoid sticking. Set aside.
• Melt the butter in a medium pot and sauté the onion and the prosciutto until the onion is lightly browned, about 5 minutes.
• Add the beef and the bay leaf and cook, stirring, until the meat has browned, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in the flour and the tomatoes and season to taste with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Reduce the heat to a simmer , cover, and cook for 45 minutes.
• Remove filling from the heat once it has finished simmering and discard the bay leaf.
• Soak the bread in the milk for about 10 minutes until the bread is softened, then squeeze to drain off the excess liquid (the bread should be wet but not dripping).
• Combine the soaked bread, egg, and grated cheese in a bowl; then combine with the meat mixture, stirring until everything is uniform.
• Preheat the oven to 425 F. Butter a baking pan large enough to hold all of the cannelloni snugly.
• Use a spoon to stuff each tube of pasta with some of the meat filling. Place the filled cannelloni closely together in the prepared pan.
• Pour the béchamel over the cannelloni, sprinkle with a little more grated Parmigiano, and dot it with a little more butter.
• Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the top is golden brown. Serve hot.

BEEF AND CHEESE MANICOTTI

Steps:

• Heat a heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon of the olive oil, onion and ground beef. Season with salt and pepper. Saute until the meat browns and the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, and cool.
• Brush 1 teaspoon of oil over a large baking sheet. Cook the manicotti in a large pot of boiling salted water until slightly softened, but still very firm to the bite, about 4 to 6 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the manicotti from the pot to the oiled baking sheet and cool.
• Meanwhile, combine the ricotta, 1 1/2 to 2 cups mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan, and parsley. Add the garlic, salt, and pepper to taste, and mix. Stir the cooled meat mixture into the cheese mixture.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Brush the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil over a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. Spoon 1 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce over the bottom of the prepared dish. Fill the manicotti with the cheese-meat mixture. Arrange the stuffed pasta in a single layer in the prepared dish and spoon the remaining sauce over.
• Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese, then the remaining 1/2 cup of Parmesan over the stuffed pasta. Dot entire dish with the butter pieces. Bake the manicotti uncovered until heated through and the sauce bubbles on the sides of the dish, about 30 to 35 minutes. Let the manicotti stand 5 minutes and serve.

MANICOTTI WITH ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large saucepot over medium heat. Cook the sausage, breaking it up into small pieces, until browned and caramelized, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the sausage to a paper towel-lined plate and reserve for the filling.
• Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to the pot and cook the onion until softened and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute (the tomato paste will turn a deep maroon color). Add the crushed tomatoes, sugar, bay leaves, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and a pinch of black pepper. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and cook for 30 minutes. Melt the butter into the sauce, remove the bay leaves and stir in 1/3 cup of basil. Remove the sauce from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature, 40 minutes.
• For the filling: mix together the ricotta, reserved sausage, the remaining 1/3 cup basil, 1 1/2 cups mozzarella, 1 1/2 cups Parmesan, 1 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste. Fold in 1 cup of the cooled tomato sauce. Place the filling in a large piping bag and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the manicotti shells until they have softened slightly but still hold their tubular shape, 5 minutes.
• Pour half of the tomato sauce into a broiler-proof 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Fill each shell with the ricotta mixture. Place the filled shells in the baking dish. Pipe any extra filling along the ends of the shells in the dish. Top with the remaining tomato sauce and sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups mozzarella and 1 cup Parmesan over the top. Cover the baking dish with foil and bake until the sauce begins to bubble, 40 minutes. Remove the dish from the oven, remove the foil and increase the oven to 425 degrees F. Put the manicotti back into the oven to bake until the cheese is browned and bubbling, about 10 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.

AUTHENTIC MANICOTTI & CANNELLONI

Steps:

• Marinara:
• Heat oil. Add onions and garlic and cook until soft, but not brown.
• Add tomatoes, paste, basil, sugar, salt and pepper. Reduce heat low, simmer partially covered, 40 minutes. Stir occasionally.
• Press through sieve. Season to taste.
• Crepes:
• Mix eggs and milk and beat well.
• Add flour a little at a time with a whisk.
• Butter 6" fry pan. Place a little batter in pan and swirl until bottom is covered. Cook on one side until dry. Butter pan as needed.
• Cheese filling (Manicotti):
• Mix together all ingredients.
• Meat filling (Cannelloni or Ravioli):
• Melt butter in skillet, cook onions 7-8 minutes.
• Add meat, cook until liquid cooks away. Take off the heat. Place in bowl.
• Stir in spinach and cheese. Add eggs (beaten) to mixture. Season.
• Besciamella (white sauce):
• Melt butter over moderate heat. Remove from heat and whisk in flour.
• Pour in cream and milk all at once. Whisk until flour is partially dissolved. Return to heat and cook until sauce comes to boil and is smooth.
• Simmer, low, 2-3 minutes, season.
• Assembly:
• Heat the oven to 375ËšF.
• Fill crepes with filling.
• Place film of tomato sauce into baking dishes. Lay manicotti side by side on sauce.
• Pour besciamella over and spoon rest of tomato sauce on top.
• Scatter on cheese and dot with butter.
• Bake 20 - 25 minutes, until cheese is melted and sauce bubbling.