Ricotta and Spinach Cannelloni

Chloe came to visit for Memorial Day weekend, and since she also loves to cook, I thought it would be the great opportunity to try out a new, challenging recipe. Chloe is a vegetarian, but loves cheese, so I thought that something Italian would be perfect. I have ordered cannelloni several times in a restaurant and they are always so delicious, so I wanted to learn how to make them at home. I found a savory crepe recipe for the shells and used my mom's manicotti filling recipe. While they were a lot of work to make, they turned out very tasty and I would definitely make them again.

*Thanks to Chloe for the amazing photography, especially the action shots!

Ricotta and Spinach Cannelloni

Shells:

1 C flour

3/4 C cold water

1/2 C cold milk

2 eggs

3 tbsp butter, melted

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 C cold water

1. Combine flour, water, milk, eggs, butter in salt in a blender and blend until smooth.

2. Transfer to bowl and refrigerate for about 20 minutes.

3. Add an additional 1/4 C cold water to thin the batter.

4. Heat a 10" non-stick frying pan over medium heat.

5. Ladle 1/4 C batter into the pan, turning the pan quickly to coat.

6. After small bubbles have formed (about 30 sec) carefully flip.

7. Cook an additional 15 seconds and transfer to a plate.

8. Repeat until batter is finished. This should make about 12-14 crepes (if you don't mess up!)

Filling

1 15 oz. ricotta

1 egg

4 tbsp parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp salt

1 10 oz. package of chopped, frozen spinach, cooked and drained

2 shakes of nutmeg

1. Combine all ingredients for filling.

Assembly

About 2 cups marinara sauce

Parmesan cheese

Crepes

Filling

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Ladle small amount of sauce in the bottom of an 8x8 glass baking dish or other casserole dish.

3. Put about 1/3 C filling in each crepe in a log shape.

4. Roll crepe over filling, making sure to turn in the ends.

5. Place the cannelloni seam side down in the sauce.

6. Repeat until you run out of crepe shells.

7. Top with sauce to cover.

8. Bake covered for 15 minutes.

9. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and bake uncovered for 20 minutes.

10. Serve. Makes about 4 servings.

Difficulty: Hard

Debbie's Rating:9

Hirsh's Rating: 9

Chloe's Rating: 9.5