Ricotta and spinach cannelloni just like at the Italian restaurant, with a wonderfully creamy filling, a delicious tomato sauce and, of course, plenty of Parmesan baked on top.

Whenever we run out of ideas for cooking at home, or our stock of fresh vegetables is slowly dwindling, we often make this quick and incredibly tasty pasta dish from the oven.

We always keep a small supply of ricotta in our fridge, because we simply can't live without this Italian classic. A packet of frozen spinach also always has a place in our home, so this dish can be cooked at a moment's notice.

But I also love serving this dish when we have guests, since it can be prepared so well in advance and all you have to do is slide it into the oven. That way you have time for everything else and can chat with your guests in peace while the oven does all the work.

Cannelloni are among the best-known Italian pasta shapes. The name comes from the cylindrical, tube-like shape of the pasta — «canna» translates roughly as tube or reed. Cannelloni were invented in a coastal town called Sorrento near Naples.

Back then, a pasta dough was first prepared, then rolled out flat and cut into squares. The filling was placed in the middle of each pasta square and then rolled up into little rolls.

Today you can buy cannelloni ready-made as tubes at the supermarket and all you have to do is finish them off with a filling of your choice. Perfect when you're in a hurry

There are countless cannelloni recipes out there. Basically, you can fill the pasta tubes with any ingredients imaginable, place them in a baking dish, cover them with a sauce and finish cooking them in the oven. Yes, you heard right — the pasta isn't boiled in water, it just goes into the oven. Thanks to the creamy filling and the sauce they bake in, the cannelloni turn soft even without pre-cooking.

For this recipe I reached for fresh spinach and creamy ricotta and rounded off this combination with an authentic tomato sauce.

Whether for dinner with friends or as a main course for the family, this recipe is sure to delight everyone! The cannelloni are easy to make, yet an absolute dream in terms of flavour.

Anyone who thinks this recipe is complicated is mistaken. The preparation takes just 20 minutes and the oven does the rest.

Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni

• Preparation20 min
• Baking time30 min
• Total50 min

• Calories610kcal
• Carbohydrates62gof which sugars 13 g
• Protein34g
• Fat23gof which saturated 11 g
• Fibre8g

per serving

CategoryLunch / DinnerCoursePastaCountryItaly

Servings:–4+

Ingredients

• 24 cannelloni

Filling for the cannelloni

• 500 gr spinach (fresh or frozen)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 shallot (finely chopped)
• 250 gr ricotta
• 1 garlic clove (pressed)
• 40 gr Parmesan (grated)
• 1 pinch nutmeg
• 1 tsp salt
• Pepper and/or pepper oil

Sauce for over the cannelloni

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 shallot (finely chopped)
• 2 garlic cloves (pressed)
• 600 ml tomatoes (passata)
• 400 ml tomatoes (chopped)
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 tsp salt
• Pepper and/or pepper oil
• 1 tsp herbes de Provence
• 1-2 toothpicks herb oil (basil, oregano, marjoram and rosemary oil, or fresh herbs instead)
• 100 gr Parmesan (grated)

Method

1. Finely chop the shallots and press the garlic
2. Heat the olive oil in a pan and sweat the shallots and garlic in it. Add the spinach, let everything steam briefly, then transfer to a bowl to let the spinach mixture cool.
3. Meanwhile, chop the second shallot as well and press the garlic cloves. Heat the olive oil in the same pan and sweat the shallots and garlic in it. Add 1 tbsp tomato purée along with the passata and the chopped tomatoes and let it simmer for about 15 min.
4. Add the ricotta along with salt, pepper, nutmeg and 40g grated Parmesan to the cooled spinach and mix everything together. Now fill the cannelloni with the finished filling using a teaspoon. Lay the filled cannelloni side by side on the bottom of a large baking dish.
5. Preheat the oven to 200°C top/bottom heat.
6. Then season the tomato sauce with 1 tsp salt as well as pepper and herbs to taste. I always use 1 tsp herbes de Provence, plus 1 toothpick each of basil, oregano, marjoram and rosemary oil, to get an intense herb aroma. If you like, you can also add a little pepper oil to give the dish that certain something.
7. Pour the finished tomato sauce over the cannelloni in the baking dish, spread it out well and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan.
8. Bake for about 20-30 min. in the middle of the oven preheated to 200 degrees.

Notes

Pepper oil is one of the secret ingredients in my kitchen. Thanks to the oil's spicy, warm aroma, the individual flavours of a dish come through far better and every bite becomes a culinary experience.

Cooking with essential oils

How to dose essential oils (toothpick method!), when to add them and what to look out for — it is all in the guide.

To the guide →To the oil lexicon →

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