Turkey Cannelloni with Roasted Peppers & Spinach Recipe

I was about nine years old when I had my first bite of cannelloni. My dad's business had just moved into a charming brick building in the heart of Vancouver's historic Gastown. Each time we went to visit him at work, my mum and I first stopped at the famous steam clock on the corner, which entertained tourists and kids alike when it played a tune and blew out steam every quarter hour. Years later, I worked at a restaurant directly across the street from that clock and was promptly transported back to my childhood every fifteen minutes.

When we dropped into my dad's office for a visit, it was often around lunchtime. On the first floor of the building, looking out onto the working train yard and harbor beyond, was one of Vancouver restaurateur Umberto Menghi's eateries. Eating at Al Porto marked my foray into traditional Italian food. I was hooked. I wasn't a kid to be put off by unfamiliar dishes, and was tempted by the description of the cannelloni - tubes of pasta, filled with a mixture of ricotta and spinach, and topped with a hearty tomato sauce. The steaming oval dish of baked pasta arrived and I took my first bite. I remember the sensation of my teeth sinking through the tender pasta into the creamy ricotta. Cannelloni immediately became a good word in my fledgling vocabulary.

In North America, the terms cannelloni and manicotti are often used interchangeably. However, if you have an Italian grandmother or simply know a lot of Italian food, you may know that there is a distinction between the two. Cannelloni is made of a pasta sheet that is boiled in water, filled with a mixture of ricotta and spinach or meat, rolled, topped with either a tomato or Bechamel and then baked. Alternatively, manicotti is actually an Italian crepe stuffed with a variety of fillings.

This version is a somewhat bastardized version of the original. The sheets of pasta are stuffed with a mixture of ground turkey, ricotta, roasted red bell peppers and spinach, rolled, and topped with a tomato sauce. Umberto may not approve, but my family certainly did. The beauty of this recipe is that it can be made the day ahead and then baked before serving.

The recipe:

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil and add no-boil lasagne noodles (yes, we're flying in the face of danger). Stir gently while cooking so that the noodle do not stick to each other. Cook for 6 minutes. Gently remove with a slotted spoon or tongs, and place the noodles directly into a bowl of cold water.

Gently lay the noodles on a clean kitchen towel and dab off moisture with paper towel.

The filling:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion and saute until they are just turning brown, about 2 minutes. Add minced garlic and saute for additional 30 seconds. Add ground turkey and cook, breaking up with wooden spoon, until turkey is cooked through. Put a lid on top (slightly askew) and pour any accumulated juice out of the pan. Transfer turkey mixture to a large bowl.

Stir in baby spinach leaves and roasted red peppers. Mix well.

Allow the mixture then cool, then stir in ricotta and Parmesan cheeses, dried chile flakes, nutmeg, basil and parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

At one short end of each lasagne noodle, place ⅓ cup turkey mixture. Roll up noodles to form tubes.

Prepare a 9- by 13-inch baking pan by spreading ¾ cup tomato sauce on the bottom. Arrange pasta tubes, seam-sides down, in the pan. Spread additional 1 ½ cups tomato sauce on top, and sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese.

Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for additional 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Turkey Cannelloni with Roasted Peppers & Spinach

12 "No-boil" lasagne noodles

Filling:
1 small yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb. ground turkey
1 cup (packed) baby spinach leaves
1 roasted red bell pepper (2 halves), thinly sliced
12 oz. low-fat ricotta cheese
1 cup (packed) grated Parmesan cheese, divided
½ teaspoon dried chile flakes
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
¼ cup thinly sliced fresh basil
2 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley
¾ teaspoon kosher salt (to taste)
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (to taste)

2 cups tomato sauce

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil and add no-boil lasagne noodles (yes, we're flying in the face of danger). Stir gently while cooking so that the noodle do not stick to each other. Cook for 6 minutes. Gently remove with a slotted spoon or tongs, and place the noodles directly into a bowl of cold water.

Gently lay the noodles on a clean kitchen towel and dab off moisture with paper towel.

The filling:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion and saute until they are just turning brown, about 2 minutes. Add minced garlic and saute for additional 30 seconds. Add ground turkey and cook, breaking up with wooden spoon, until turkey is cooked through. Put a lid on top (slightly askew) and pour any accumulated juice out of the pan. Transfer turkey mixture to a large bowl.

Stir in baby spinach leaves and roasted red peppers. Mix well.

Allow the mixture then cool, then stir in ricotta and Parmesan cheeses, dried chile flakes, nutmeg, basil and parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

At one short end of each lasagne noodle, place ⅓ cup turkey mixture. Roll up noodles to form tubes.

Prepare a 9- by 13-inch baking pan by spreading ¾ cup tomato sauce on the bottom. Arrange pasta tubes, seam-sides down, in the pan. Spread additional 1 ½ cups tomato sauce on top, and sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese.

Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for additional 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Serves 4 to 6 (12 tubes).

Printable recipe