Spinach Beef Cannelloni (Manicotti)
User Reviews
5.0
153 reviews
Excellent
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Prep Time
30 mins
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Cook Time
30 mins
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Total Time
1 hr 15 mins
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Servings
5
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Calories
60906 kcal
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Course
Main Course
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Cuisine
Italian, American, Italian-American Fussion
Spinach Beef Cannelloni (Manicotti)
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Recipe video above. You will love how flavourful the juicy beef filling and sauce is! Too many recipes disappoint by using plain canned tomato - the sauce needs flavour! It will seem like there's a lot of sauce (and there is) and that it's too thin (and it is!) BUT you need it because the cannelloni sucks up a lot when it's cooking!!! Serves 4 very hungry people, 5 normal people.
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Ingredients
Cannelloni Sauce:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1/2 onion , finely chopped
- 1 carrot , small, finely chopped (optional)
- 1 celery rib , finely chopped (optional)
- 800g / 28oz crushed tomato , canned
- 2 cups (500ml) chicken stock / broth , low sodium (or vegetable)
- 1/2 tsp EACH thyme, oregano, salt, pepper
- 1/4 tsp chilli flakes , optional
Spinach Beef Filling:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1/2 onion , finely chopped
- 500g / 1lb beef mince , lean
- 250g / 8oz frozen spinach, chopped , thawed, excess liquid squeezed out (Note 1)
- 1 beef bouillon cube , crumbled (Note 2)
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Cannelloni:
- 21 - 24 cannelloni tubes (220g/7oz) OR 10 Manicotti tubes (Note 3)
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese , freshly grated (or other melting cheese)
- chopped parsley , garnish (optional)
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Instructions
Cannelloni Sauce:
- 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.
Spinach Beef Filling:
- 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.
Assembly and Baking:
- 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!
Notes
- Spinach - I use frozen for convenience. Feel free to use fresh - you'll need 200g/7oz fresh spinach (about 6 - 8 cups) roughly chopped. Then plunge briefly into pot of boiling water until it wilts (weight will increase due to water), then use per recipe.
- Beef bouillon cube - also known as beef stock cube, can also use 1 tsp beef stock powder / granulated beef bouillon. It's used here to add extra flavour into filling - better than using plain salt!
- Cannelloni
- Storage - keep cooked leftovers in the fridge for 4 days and reheat in microwave. Can also freeze cooked leftovers - thaw then reheat.
- Freezing uncooked (best freezing method) - add an extra 1/2 cup of water in the sauce, then assemble per recipe. Do not bake. Cover, cool, freeze. To bake, thaw then cook per recipe.
- Nutrition per serving
- 1 standard packet is usually 250g and has 30 tubes, you will only use 21 - 24 tubes.
- Cannelloni is a tube shaped dry pasta 7cm / 3″ long, 2cm / 2/3″ wide. Stuff uncooked, will cook & soften in oven.
- Can also use manicotti - bigger version of cannelloni with ridges. Recipe will fill about 10 manicotti tubes.
- Can also roll filling up in fresh lasagna sheets - whatever size you want them to be!
Nutrition Information
Show Details
Calories
609.06cal
(30%)
Carbohydrates
50.15g
(17%)
Protein
42.14g
(84%)
Fat
27.64g
(43%)
Saturated Fat
11.12g
(56%)
Cholesterol
100.42mg
(33%)
Sodium
1079.82mg
(45%)
Potassium
1268.79mg
(36%)
Fiber
6.67g
(27%)
Sugar
10.93g
(22%)
Vitamin A
8613.55IU
(172%)
Vitamin C
20.44mg
(23%)
Calcium
383.77mg
(38%)
Iron
6.28mg
(35%)
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 5Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 60906 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 609.06cal | 30% |
| Carbohydrates | 50.15g | 17% |
| Protein | 42.14g | 84% |
| Fat | 27.64g | 43% |
| Saturated Fat | 11.12g | 56% |
| Cholesterol | 100.42mg | 33% |
| Sodium | 1079.82mg | 45% |
| Potassium | 1268.79mg | 27% |
| Fiber | 6.67g | 27% |
| Sugar | 10.93g | 22% |
| Vitamin A | 8613.55IU | 172% |
| Vitamin C | 20.44mg | 23% |
| Calcium | 383.77mg | 38% |
| Iron | 6.28mg | 35% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Genuine Reviews
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5.0
153 reviews
Excellent
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