Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni with Tomato Sauce

• 250gdried cannelloni tubes (about 16)
• 500gfrozen spinach, defrosted
• 250gricotta
• 1egg
• 60gParmesan (or vegetarian Italian hard cheese), finely grated
• 1/2 tspfreshly grated nutmeg
• 30 mllemon juice
• 1 x 125gball mozzarella, torn
• fine salt
• black pepper
• 700gpassata
• 3garlic cloves, finely grated
• 3 tbspolive oil
• 20gbasil, leaves torn
• 120gmixed salad leaves
• Finely grated lemon zest (2 g)

Method

1. 1Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan). Squeeze the spinach in your hands a handful at a time until no more water runs out, then chop it roughly. Do this properly; wet spinach makes a sloppy filling that leaks.
2. 2Mix the spinach with the ricotta, egg, two-thirds of the Parmesan, the nutmeg, the lemon zest, half a teaspoon of salt and plenty of pepper. Season it boldly; the pasta and sauce dilute it.
3. 3Stir the passata with the garlic, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, most of the basil, a teaspoon of salt, pepper and 200ml of water. Spread a third of it over the base of a baking dish about 30 x 20cm.
4. 4Spoon the filling into a freezer bag, snip off a corner and pipe it into the cannelloni tubes, or push it in with a teaspoon. Lay the tubes in a single layer in the dish and pour the rest of the sauce over so every tube is covered; any pasta left poking out stays hard.
5. 5Cover tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes until the pasta gives easily when pierced with a knife.
6. 6Take off the foil, tear the mozzarella over the top and scatter with the rest of the Parmesan. Bake for 12 minutes more until the cheese is golden in patches and the sauce bubbles at the edges. Let it stand for 5 minutes so the sauce settles and the tubes hold their shape.
7. 7Toss the salad leaves with the lemon juice, the last tablespoon of oil and a pinch of salt. Scatter the remaining basil over the cannelloni and serve with the salad.

Per serving

kcal

704

protein

38.9g

fibre

8.2g

carbs

68.6g

fat

31.3g