Ingredients: |
Ingredients: Tomato sauce (directions follow)
Bechamel sauce (directions follow)
Meat filling (directions follow)
Cannelloni crepes (directions follow)
About 4 cups shredded fontina or jack cheese
Tomato Sauce
Cook 1 medium-sized onion, finely chopped, in 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil until soft. Add 1 cup finely chopped, lightly packed parsley; 1 carrot, finely chopped; and 1 red bell pepper, seeded and finely chopped (or 2 canned whole pimientos, finely chopped); cook, stirring, until carrot is slightly soft.
Drain liquid from 1 can (about pound) pear-shaped tomatoes into vegetables; chop tomatoes. Add tomatoes and juices, 1 can (10¾ ounce) condensed chicken broth, and 1 teaspoon basil leaves to vegetables. Boil rapidly, stirring frequently, until reduced to 2 cups (most of the liquid is evaporated). Add salt to taste. Use hot or cold; cover if chilled.
Bechamel Sauce
Mince 1 medium-sized onion and cook until soft in 4 tablespoons butter or margarine. Blend in 3 tablespoons flour, remove form heat, and gradually add ¾ cup regular-strength or condensed chicken broth, 1 cup milk and ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg. Simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently, until reduced to 1 ½ cups; takes about 15 minutes. Salt to taste. Use hot or cold; cover to chill.
Meat Filling
In a frying pan, cook 1 large onion, chopped, in 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil until soft. Add to pan 1 pound boneless pork shoulder or loin end, cut into ½ inch cubes. Cover and cook over medium to medium-low heat, stirring often, for 15 minutes (juices simmer as they accumulate). Add ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ½ cup, chopped, lightly packed parsley, and 3 large boned, skinned chicken thighs (about ¾ lb total weight), cut in ½ inch cubes. Cover and continue to simmer another 15 minutes. If the mixture begins to brown, add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, to keep slightly moist. Let cool.
Force meat mixture (including any juices) and 1/8 pound prosciutto (Italian-style ham – optional) through medium blade of a food chopper. Mix well with 2 whole eggs, ½ cup Parmesan cheese, 1 cup ricotta cheese, and salt to taste. Cover; chill until ready to use.
Cannelloni Crepes
Beat 3 whole eggs to blend, then mix in smoothly 2/3 cup unsifted flour. Thoroughly blend in 1 cup milk. To make each crepe, melt about ½ teaspoon butter or margarine in a 6 inch crepe pan over medium heat, then pour in about 2½ tablespoons crepe batter, tilting pan quickly to cover bottom evenly (pan should be hot enough for tiny bubbles to form in batter).
Cook until crepe is dry on surface. Run the tip of a long spatula around rim of crepe to free, then lift and tilt pan so that center of crepe rolls out and across the spatula blade. Set pan back on heat and lay crepe back into pan, uncooked side down. Cook just until slightly browned on bottom. Invert cooked crepe from pan onto a plate or sheet of foil. Repeat to make each crepe, stacking one upon another as cooked. Use at room temperature, separating carefully.
Cover if chilled. Makes 14 to 16 crepes.
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Directions: |
Directions:Blend tomato sauce with bechamel sauce. Choose the containers in which to bake cannellloni (see following) and spoon some of the blended sauce equally into each, coating container bottoms.
Divide meat filling into equal portions (about ¼ cup) for each crepe. Mound a portion of the filling down the center of each crepe and roll to enclosure. Set filled crepe, seam side down, side by side and slightly apart in sauce-coated pans. Sprinkle evenly with shredded cheese to cover entire surface of crepes. At this point, you can cover and chill as long as overnight.
Bake uncovered in a 350º oven for 12 to 15 minutes, or until sauce is bubbling and filling is hot. Serve at once. Makes 14 to 16 cannelloni; allow 2 or 3 for a main-dish serving.
Containers for baking cannelloni: To bake a full recipe of cannelloni you will need one shallow container that is at least 12x15 inches; or 2 shallow containers, each at least 6x15 inches. |
This recipe for Cannelloni Roma is from