Description

My Grandmother who was born in the US called this Cannelloni probably because her mother who was born in the southern part of Italy called it Cannelloni. Most Italian Americans know a recipe like this or something similar to it as Manicotti but it is made with a thick tubular macaroni. My Grandmother made this dish with crepes or (Crespelle). No matter what you call it, this dish not only brings back found memories of my Nana but is one of my favorites.

Ingredients

Crepe Batter: 3 cups warm Milk 1 tablespoon Butter 1 teaspoon Salt 4 extra large Eggs 3-4 cups All Purpose Flour Ricotta Filling: 2 lbs. Whole Milk Ricotta 1 cup grated Pecorino Romano Cheese. 1 lbs. shredded Mozzarella (reserve for topping) 1-2 10 oz frozen spinach (I use 1 10 oz but if you like a lot of spinach use 2) 4 extra large Eggs 1 teaspoon Salt ½ teaspoon Pepper 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning pinch of nutmeg Plus 4 cups (32 ounces) of your favorite tomato sauce

Instructions

In a large bowl mix all the ingredients for the Ricotta filling and set aside. Add the 3 cups of milk, butter and salt into a sauce pan. Over low heat brings the milk to just the warm stage (The butter should be just melted). Remove from heat and set aside. In a large bowl mix the eggs until well blended then slowly mix the warm milk into the eggs. Slowly mix a few tablespoons at a time of the flour into the milk/eggs until you have a smooth batter about the consistency of heavy cream. In a 10 inch none stick pry pan very lightly brushed with olive oil on low to medium heat pour about ½ a cup of your batter into the pan and using the rounded bottom of the ladle spread the mixture to your desired size (Using more or less of the batter to achieve the size you want). Your crepes will cook very quickly and will only need 20-30 seconds per side. You want them to be cooked but not browned. Set your stack of cooked crepes aside. Add about a cup of gravy to the bottom of a 9x12 baking dish and spread evenly. Using a small plate or cutting board take one crepe at a time add 2-3 tablespoons (Give or take depending on how much filling you like and how many finished crepes you want) and roll into a cylinder. Place stuffed crepes seam side down in the baking dish in a single layer till filled (I use 2 9x12 baking dishes and get about 12-15 crepes per pan. Using a large spoon cover all the crepes with gravy making sure you don’t have any dry spots. Reserve any remaining gravy to be used on the side of the finished dish. Evenly spread half cup of Mozzarella per baking dish and sprinkle Romano cheese over the tops to your liking. Cover with foil and bake in a 350-degree oven for 45 minutes, remove foil and continue to bake 5-10 minutes or until top is browned. Or place under the broiler to top is browned. Allow to cool 10-15 minutes before serving.

Serves

Depending on the size you make the crepes (Using a 10 inch pan you should get 28-30)..

Cannelloni/Manicotti