Friday, November 16, 2007

A Camera-less Kitchen :-(

Ah, well. I guess this is what happens when I get embroiled in some post-illness cooking! I had been intending to make and freeze a batch of canelloni for my mom but I was knocked sideways by one of my latest downturns yesterday and could barely get off the couch, soooooooo there was no cooking. Luckily, today I'm feeling stronger so I whipped up a pan and stuck it in the deep-freeze, conveniently forgetting to take any photos what so ever! However, if I remember when mom takes the pan out to bake later, I will be sure to take some gratuitous melty cheese photos (since there is a LOT of cheese. Spinach too, but mostly cheese. Come on, I'm catering to the white-bread crowd here!).


So, here's the recipe that I made up as I went along, it's vegetarian, comforting, and enough to feed a small family (unless you have our family, which includes a ravenous yet enviably stick-thin 23-year-old stepbrother). It's the perfect make-ahead meal to put together on the weekend and reheat after work mid-week, too! Next time I make this (provided it isn't for the picky stepbrother) I would add mushrooms, onions, and some zucchini too. More veggies are always better!


So for my first time submitting to Ruth's Presto Pasta Nights, I give you Camera-Shy Cannelloni!

Camera-Shy Cannelloni
Serves 4
1 250g box Cannelloni pasta
1 cup 1% cottage cheese
1 tsp black pepper
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp basil
1/2 tbsp oregano
1 tsp onion powder
10 oz frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 cups crushed tomatoes
1 tbsp dried parsley
1/2 tbsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne powder
1 oz mozzarella cheese, finely shredded
  1. Bring a large, heavily salted pot of water to a boil.
  2. Add noodles and cook 3 minutes, drain and place into a bowl of cold water immediately.
  3. In a food processor, blend cottage cheese, pepper, garlic powder, basil, oregano and onion powder until creamy and mostly smooth.
  4. Add to spinach, mix to combine well. Stir in Parmesan cheese.
  5. In another bowl, combine crushed tomatoes, parsely, garlic powder and cayenne.
  6. Spread a thin layer of tomatoes on the bottom of a foil-lined 9 x 13" baking pan.
  7. Fill the noodles with the cheese / spinach blend, either using a small spoon (my method) or a pastry / plastic bag (with the corner snipped off) and place on the sauce.
  8. If a second layer is needed, spread a layer of sauce between the noodles.
  9. If you have any leftover cheese mixture, mix it into the tomato sauce.
  10. Top all the noodles with the remaining sauce, followed by the finely shredded Mozzarella.
  11. Cover with foil and place in the fridge for a minimum of one hour, preferably longer. If freezing, place pan in freezer. When noodles and sauce have frozen, remove foil from pan and wrap securely before replacing in freezer. It will store up to 2 months. Thaw completely before baking.
  12. Preheat oven to 350F.
  13. Keeping pasta loosely covered, bake for 40 minutes.
  14. Uncover and bake a further 7-8 minutes, or until cheese is golden and bubbly.

Nutritional Information Per Serving
Calories: 337.0
Total Fat: 15.2 g
Cholesterol: 12.8 mg
Sodium: 567.5 mg
Total Carbs: 50.0 g
Dietary Fiber: 3.9 g
Protein: 20.6 g

3 comments :

  1. i can out eat your step brother any time ..... but its not good for us to eat that much kabooooom.... anywho ur recipe sounds amazing my sugarbee

    ReplyDelete
  2. I can't believe that I have misssed so many of your posts Sarah. I am just catching up now...everything looks so good!!! Does Oshawa still have the food festival in the summer?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sarah, thanks for joining Presto Pasta Nights and the canneloni sounds awesome even if there's no photo.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for the feedback!