Farm Stand Spinach Cannelloni

A while ago, I bought the Earthbound Farm Organic Cookbook Food to Live By on the recommendation of my friend Amanda. She was raving about this cookbook, so I just had to get it for myself to see what all the fuss was about.


What I like most about it is that it reads a lot like, well...a book. Imagine that! Even for people who don't buy into or can't afford the whole "organic" thing (like me!), this cookbook is really good for recipes from quality, fresh ingredients. It also has information in the sidebar to describe certain ingredients, explain a technique, or just notes to help you with the recipe at hand (which are really helpful). I feel like I've learned a good deal just from reading and cooking the recipes from this cookbook!


Yesterday afternoon, I decided to make dinner for my family. Italian food might rival Mexican for my favorite cuisine, so I eventually settled on the Farm Stand Spinach Cannelloni (I've included the recipe at the bottom of this post).


Honestly, the cannelloni were relatively easy to prepare, and I feel like there was maximum payoff for minimum effort. I was a little short on spinach, but I used less and they still turned out amazing.


My mom was pretty thrilled to have the night off, too!






Farm Stand Spinach Cannelloni 
(from Food to Live By)

Makes 16 canneloni (I got a couple fewer than 16), serves 4

8 lasagna noodles (10 inches in length)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup minced shallots or yellow onion (I omitted this)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 pound (about 12 cups) fresh baby spinach, coarsely chopped (like I said, I used less)
1 3/4 cups (15 oz) ricotta cheese
1 large egg
Pinch of ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesean cheese
1/4 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus coarsely chopped parsley for garnish
3 cups Marinara Sauce (I used sauce from a jar, FTLB has a recipe for Farm Stand Marinara Sauce that I hope to try soon!)

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the lasagna noodles and cook according to the package directions until just tender. Do not undercook the lasagna noodles because they will not continue to cook in the oven. Drain the noodles well and lay them out flat on a clean dish towel (not terry cloth) so they do not stickk together.

2. Heat the olive oil in a large, preferably nonstick, skillet over medium-low heat. Add the shallots and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme, basil, and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and cook, stirring frequently, 1 minute.

3. Add about a quarter of the spinach to the skillet and cook, turning frequently with tongs, until it wilts, 2 to 5 minutes. Continue adding spinach until all of it has wilted. Drain the spinach mixture in a strainer, pressing down on it to extract the liquid. Transfer the spinach mixture to a medium-size bowl and let it cool.

4. Place the ricotta cheese, egg, nutmeg, pepper, and the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt in a bowl. Add 1/2 cup of the Parmesean cheese and the minced parsley. Stir to combine. Add the cheese mixture to the cooled spinach and stir to combine.

5. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F.

6. Spread 1 cup of the marinara sauce on the bottom of a 9 by 13-inch baking pan.

7. Cut each lasagna noodle in half crosswise to make 16 pieces, each 4 to 5 inches ong. Place a piece of lasagna noodle on a work surface. Spoon 1/4 cup of the spinach filling along the short edge of the noodle and roll it up to encose the filling. Repeat with the remaining pieces of noodle and filling. Arrange the cannelloni in the baking pan, side by side, seam side down, fitted closely together.

8. Cover the Cannelloni with the remaining 2 cups of marinara sauce and sprinkle the remaining 1 cup of Parmesean cheese on top. Prepared up to this point, the cannelloni can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 2 days. They can be frozen for up to a month; wrap the baking pan tightlly in several layers of plastic wrap before freezing (there's no need to thaw the cannelloni before baking, but you will need to increase the baking time by 30 minutes).

9. Bake the canneloni until they are hot, the sauce bubbles, and the Parmesean cheese melts, 25 to 30 minutes. Sprinkle the chopped parsley on top of the cannelloni and serve hot.