Canolli

By stacymd23

Ingredients

• SAUCE:
• 1 chicken breast, cooked & shredded
• 1/4 - 1/4 C fresh, shredded parmesan cheese
• 1 - 1 C ricotta cheese
• 1/2 - 1/2 C shredded mozzarella
• 1 - 1 Egg, beaten
• 1 - 1 garlic clove, minced or use garlic press
• 1 - 1 T chopped fresh basil (maybe a little more than 1 T)
• 1/4 - 1/4 t pepper
• 1/2 - 1/2 t salt
• 1 1/2 - 1 1/2 C jarred marinara (you could make your own, but this is faster and tasted great)
• 1/2 - 1/2 C cream
• 24 - 24 grape tomatoes, smashed up a bit (I pulsed in the blender a few times)
• 1/4 - 1/4 – 1/2 C shredded asiago cheese
• SHELLS:
• Ideally I suppose you make your own pasta, roll it into thin sheets and cut into rectangles. Yeah, THAT’S gonna happen around here….so, I tried two readily-available pastas.
• Barilla No-Boil Homemade Style (Flat) Lasagna Noodles(8): These were PERFECT. Boil 3 minutes,

Preparation

Step 1

Barilla No-Boil Homemade Style (Flat) Lasagna Noodles: These were PERFECT. Boil 3 minutes, CAREFULLY remove from the water (it’s easy to crack them in the middle, so be gentle!). Filling them is a cinch…just lay the rectangle out portrait (you know, tall-wise), lay your filling across the noodle near the end, then roll up! (I had a few cracks when I took them out of the water, but the noodle overlaps itself when you roll it up, so it wasn’t a problem) Pictured RIGHT.

Manicotti Shells: I also tried manicotti shells. They didn’t taste quite as good, and they’re harder to stuff. So, I will definitely do the flat, no-boil lasagna noodles from now on. Pictured LEFT.

DIRECTIONS:
Mix filling ingredients.

Mix sauce ingredients and warm on the stove (doesn’t need to cook too long or get too hot).

Spray a rectangular casserole dish or metal cake pan with spray oil. Stuff cannelloni (see noodle descriptions above). Place stuffed cannelloni in the pan. Cover with sauce.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Mangia!