Vegan Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni
Fresh spinach and basil mixed with easy to whip up dairy-free ricotta, stuffed into cannelloni pasta, and coated in tomato sauce. So delicious no one will even know it's vegan!
Fresh spinach and basil mixed with easy to whip up dairy-free ricotta, stuffed into cannelloni pasta, and coated in tomato sauce. So delicious no one will even know it's vegan!
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 batch quick vegan tofu ricotta ((cashew or macadamia ricotta, see notes))
- 3 cups prepared tomato sauce ((one 700ml jar))
- 1/2 yellow onion (chopped)
- 4 big handfuls fresh spinach ((about 5 oz))
- 1 small bunch fresh basil leaves ((about 20g))
- 18 cannelloni noodles ((maybe a couple more or less d
- Carbohydrate 1.40716666666667 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 0.580000000241223 g
- Fiber 0.190833336114883 g
- Protein 0.206833333333333 g
- Saturated Fat 0.0830033333666415 g
- Serving Size 1 1 (3 stuffed noodles per serving) (11g)
- Sodium 0.661250000004824 mg
- Sugar 1.21633333055178 g
- Trans Fat 0.0203158333398658 g
- Calories 11 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat your oven to 350F (180C).
- Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add in the onion and garlic, sauté until the onion begins to soften but doesn't yet brown, about 4 minutes. Reduce the heat to low, add in the spinach and cover. Check and stir the spinach every minute until the spinach has wilted, about 4 more minutes.
- Add the cooked spinach and onions to the food processor with the ricotta. Add in the basil, reserving some basil leaves for garnish. Pulse a couple of times, stopping to scrape the sides as needed until the ricotta is spotted with green throughout.
- Prepare the cannelloni noodles according to package directions. Mine were the oven ready type, so there was no preparation needed. Spread about 1/4 of the tomato sauce in the bottom of a 9" x 13" pan.
- Scoop the ricotta mixture into a large sealable bag and cut off the corner. Alternatively, use a pastry bag. Fill the cannelloni noodles by squeezing some of the ricotta into one end of a noodle, flipping the noodle over and filling from the other side. Lay the noodle in the baking dish with the sauce in a single layer. Repeat with the remaining noodles until the dish is full and the ricotta is used up. Don't worry about these being perfect, they are going to get smothered in tomato sauce anyways, so any messes will be hidden. Cover with the remaining tomato sauce making sure each noodle is coated in sauce.
- Bake 30 to 35 minutes until the cannelloni are tender and the sauce is hot. (Alternatively, follow the baking directions on your pasta package, it may vary). Remove from oven and garnish with basil leaves.
Substituting fresh spinach for frozen leaves radically alters the moisture content of the filling. Fresh leaves must be wilted and thoroughly drained of excess water before incorporation, or the escaping steam will break down the structure of the dairy-free ricotta during baking. Sautéing the aromatics over medium-high heat for four minutes softens the onions without caramelizing them, preserving a sharp allium backbone that cuts through the rich tofu base.
Processing the wilted greens, basil, and cheese base requires restraint to maintain texture. Pulsing the food processor a mere couple of times distributes the chlorophyll evenly while keeping the ricotta from turning into a loose paste. Scraping down the bowl between pulses ensures that stray garlic chunks do not hide out in the blades.
Piping the filling into rigid tubes demands a reliable delivery system like a trimmed pastry bag or a heavy-duty storage bag with a corner removed. Filling from both ends of the cylinder eliminates empty pockets that cause the pasta to collapse under the weight of the sauce. Coating every single noodle completely in the tomato sauce prevents exposed pasta edges from drying out and turning brittle in a 350 degree oven.
Adapting this dish for various dietary requirements is straightforward by adjusting the base protein of the ricotta substitute. Cashew, macadamia, or firm tofu blocks all yield functional curds when blended with acid and salt, though oil ratios must be balanced to prevent separation. Baking for 30 to 35 minutes yields tender tubes surrounded by a bubbling, hot reduction of tomato sauce.
