Cannelloni Recipe

This homemade Cannelloni is an amazing pasta recipe! It looks fancy and tastes even better! Everyone will be impressed with this homemade pasta bake with its deliciously, rich red sauce and pasta wrapped around an indulgent cheesy filling.

Of course, it has a generous layer of more sauce and cheese to top it all off. In other words- pasta heaven! The best part is that, with one secret ingredient, it’s simple and easy to assemble!! Nobody will believe that you didn’t work all day to make it.

Baked pasta have to be some of the most comforting foods in the world! Try my baked ziti with ricotta, stuffed shells, chicken lasagna, or million dollar spaghetti next! I promise you’ll love each and every one of them! ♥

So, let’s make some pasta!

What I Love About Cannelloni Recipe

This full of flavor, classic Italian Cannelloni Recipe is fantastic in so many ways. Besides making your kitchen smell like heaven, the presentation is elegant and feels a little fancy, but it is so simple to make! I also love:

• It utilizes no-boil noodles that are sooo easy to stuff!
• The delicious homemade sauce
• The triple cheese indulgence
• The authentic Italian flavor

Cannelloni Recipe + Ingredient Notes

This recipe is super easy to pull together, so don’t let the stuffed pasta idea intimidate you! You’re going to love the fancy look of the dish and proudly be able to say you made it all from scratch!

• Lasagna noodles: (aka-secret ingredient!!) I use Barilla’s no-boil lasagna noodles instead of cannelloni noodles. Cannelloni noodles are simply tube-shaped pasta and can be temperamental to deal with once boiled. Instead of using a pastry bag and tip to fill the tubes, I simply scoop filling onto the parboiled lasagna noodles and then roll them up! Easy, peasy, and no frustrations! That’s the secret technique!
• Let it sit: I know it’s tough, but it’s super important to allow your cannelloni to rest for about 15 minutes after it comes out of the oven. It gives the sauce time to set up and makes it much easier to plate.
• The sauce- This sauce is super easy to make, but if you’re pressed for time, you can use your favorite prepared sauce. You’ll need about 2.5 24-ounce jars.
  • Sunday Gravy: To take this recipe to a level of taste that’s virtually out of this stratosphere, make it with my homemade Sunday Gravy. Whenever I make my Sunday Gravy, I ALWAYS make a huge pot so I can stick some away in the freezer for use whenever I want a red sauce that brings that extra level of flavor that nothing else can bring!
• Spinach- To achieve the correct consistency for the filling, you’ll need to squeeze every bit of moisture out of the spinach that you can. With the tea towel method, put your thawed spinach in a cotton tea towel after letting it drain in a colander. Draw the towel around the spinach and twist until no more juice comes out.

Storing + Freezing + Make-Ahead

• Storing:I prefer using a glass or ceramic pan to make this. With the marinara sauce, metal can be reactive with tomato sauce so glass or ceramic is best, particularly if you are planning to make it ahead of time.
• How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge?  Seal tightly with a good-fitting lid or cling wrap. Leftovers will last 3-4 days in the fridge.
• Can You Freeze This? This freezes beautifully. You can freeze it before or after cooking. If you freeze after cooking, make sure it has completely cooled before preparing it for the freezer. To freeze, wrap with a layer or two of cling wrap, followed by a layer of aluminum foil. It will hold well in the freezer for about 3 months.
  • To cook, remove cling wrap and if possible, thaw in the fridge overnight. You can cook straight from the freezer, but your cook time will be significantly longer.
• Make-Ahead Tips: If you’re making ahead, but not looking to freeze, I suggest assembling everything up to a day ahead. It will keep well uncooked in the fridge, and you can just pop it in the oven when you’re ready for it.
• Food-Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety check out this link.

Serving Recommendations

I like to serve this with my Mediterranean salad or a salad tossed with my balsamic vinaigrette, or my simple roasted peppers. There also, of course, has to be a side of bread so I love my copycat Olive Garden bread sticks, truly amazing garlic bread, or yummy Garlic and Herb Parker House Rolls.

Top everything with my tiramisu, strawberry tiramisu, or little amaretti cookies!

How To Make Cannelloni

1. Make the Sauce: Saute onion and garlic.
2. Add carrots and continue to cook.
3. Add the crushed tomatoes, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper, and bring to a boil.
4. Using a stick blender, smooth out the sauce.
5. Make the Filling: Combine all filling ingredients in a medium mixing bowl.
6. Assembly: Spread the sauce at the bottom of the baking dish.
7. Spread the filling mixture on the pasta sheet. Roll up.
8. Arrange the pasta in the baking pan.
9. Top with the remaining sauce.
10. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil. Bake.
11. Remove the foil then add cheese. Broil until the cheese is melted.
12. Serve.

***See the full instructions below.

More Yummy Baked Pasta

• Taco Lasagna
• Five Cheese Ziti Al Forno
• Buffalo Chicken Lasagna
• Baked Ziti With Sausage
• Mostaccioli
• Baked Spaghetti
• Spaghetti Pie
• Crockpot Lasagna
• Lasagna Casserole

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Cannelloni Recipe

This Cannelloni recipe has all the things you want in Italian comfort food. The homemade red sauce pairs perfectly with the cheesy stuffed pasta shells.

Prep Time1 hour hr

Cook Time1 hour hr

Total Time2 hours hrs

Servings: 6

Author: Kathleen

Ingredients

Sauce:

• ▢ 1/4 cup olive oil
• ▢ 1 large onion chopped
• ▢ 1 tablespoon garlic minced
• ▢ 1/4 cup carrot finely grated
• ▢ 2 (28-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes including all the liquid
• ▢ 1 tablespoon dried Italian seasoning
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Filling:

• ▢ 1 pound ricotta cheese
• ▢ 1 cup parmesan cheese grated
• ▢ 2 cups Mozzarella shredded
• ▢ 2 large eggs lightly beaten
• ▢ 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach thawed and squeezed dry
• ▢ 1 tablespoon dried Italian seasoning
• ▢ pinch nutmeg
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Pasta:

• ▢ 16 ounces Barilla No Boil Lasagna Noodles

Topping:

• ▢ 2 cups Mozzarella shredded

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Make the Sauce:

• In a large skillet, heat the oil (1/4 cup) over medium heat. Add the onion (1) and garlic (1 tablespoon) and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened about 10 minutes. Add the carrot (1/4 cup) and continue to cook, until softened about 5 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes (2 cans), Italian seasoning (1 tablespoon), salt (1/2 teaspoon), and pepper (1/4 teaspoon) and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until sauce thickens about 30 minutes. Adjust seasonings. Using a stick blender, smooth out the sauce.

Make the Filling:

• Combine all filling ingredients in a medium mixing bowl; set aside

For the Pasta:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
• Lay out 2 clean kitchen towels on counter.
• Drop pasta sheets (16 ounces) into boiling water and move them around with tongs, so they don't stick together. Remove as soon as they just become pliable and lay in a single layer onto towels.

Assembly:

• Adjust oven rack to middle position. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).
• Spread about 1 1/2 cups of the tomato sauce in the bottom of a 9 X13 inch baking dish.
• With the short side of the pasta sheet facing you, spread a heaping 1/4 cup of the cheese mixture onto the bottom three-quarters of each pasta sheet.  (leave the top quarter with no filling). Roll up and place seem side down in the baking pan.
• Top with remaining sauce. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake until heated through and bubbly, about 40 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle top with remaining 2 cups mozzarella. Broil until cheese is melted and golden brown. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Fans Also Made:

• 
  Baked Spaghetti With Cream Cheese
• 
  Chicken Noodle Casserole
• 
  Johnny Marzetti Casserole
• 
  Mostaccioli

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Notes

1. Lasagna noodles: (aka-secret ingredient!!) I use Barilla’s no-boil lasagna noodles instead of cannelloni noodles. Cannelloni noodles are simply tube-shaped pasta and can be temperamental to deal with once boiled. Instead of using a pastry bag and tip to fill the tubes, I simply scoop filling onto the parboiled lasagna noodles and then roll them up! Easy, peasy, and no frustrations! That’s the secret technique!
2. Let it sit: I know it’s tough, but it’s super important to allow your cannelloni to rest for about 15 minutes after it comes out of the oven. It gives the sauce time to set up and makes it much easier to plate.
3. The sauce- This sauce is super easy to make, but if you’re pressed for time, you can use your favorite prepared sauce. You’ll need about 2.5 24-ounce jars.
   • Sunday Gravy: To take this recipe to a level of taste that’s virtually out of this stratosphere, make it with my homemade Sunday Gravy. Whenever I make my Sunday Gravy, I ALWAYS make a huge pot so I can stick some away in the freezer for use whenever I want a red sauce that brings that extra level of flavor that nothing else can bring!
4. Spinach- To achieve the correct consistency for the filling, you’ll need to squeeze every bit of moisture out of the spinach that you can. With the tea towel method, put your thawed spinach in a cotton tea towel after letting it drain in a colander. Draw the towel around the spinach and twist until no more juice comes out.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/6 of the recipe | Calories: 881kcal | Carbohydrates: 76g | Protein: 46g | Fat: 42g | Saturated Fat: 20g | Cholesterol: 166mg | Sodium: 1796mg | Potassium: 1034mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 2425IU | Vitamin C: 3.4mg | Calcium: 782mg | Iron: 2.8mg

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