Ok, so last night I finally made the Classic Cannelloni from Issue 31. I’d been wanting to make that since I first got that issue but put if off because I had no idea where I would be able to find mortadella and prosciutto for the filling. Those ingredients are no longer hard to find, and I felt the urge to make fresh pasta so I decided to try the cannelloni.
First, I will say that it was delicious…next, I will say that I don’t know that I will ever make it again…it was a pain-in-the-you-know-what. I had no idea how long it would take to make so I started at 3:30 thinking I’d have plenty of time…well, I got the darn thing in the oven at 8:30…5 hours of active prep time. I’m sure some of y’all could do it faster, but I sure couldn’t AND I had the help of my wonderful step-daughter. Without her, I think I would’ve given up.
Anyway, it was from-scratch pasta with a beef/mortadella/prosciutto filling with marinara and béchamel sauces. I think I either made the pasta too thin or I overcooked it (or both) because the pasta was slightly too soft for me. I used the thinnest setting (9), but next time I will use the setting before that one (8).
Neither my husband nor my oldest son cared for the béchamel, but the rest of us loved it. My youngest son, who is also my toughest critic, said he could find no flaws in the dish...I love that boy.
The pasta recipe said it would make 32 cannelloni…I didn’t count the sheets as I made them…I got a LOT more than 32. If I make this again, I’ll stop rolling/cutting the pasta when I get 40 or so. I spent too much time cutting pasta I didn’t need. Also, I think if I were to make this again, I’d make the pasta and the marinara the day before to make it a little easier.
It was a lot of work, more than I expected, but I’m glad I finally got around to making it…that’s one more recipe I can cross off my list. And if I ever decide to make it again, at least I’ll know what I’m getting myself into…
First, I will say that it was delicious…next, I will say that I don’t know that I will ever make it again…it was a pain-in-the-you-know-what. I had no idea how long it would take to make so I started at 3:30 thinking I’d have plenty of time…well, I got the darn thing in the oven at 8:30…5 hours of active prep time. I’m sure some of y’all could do it faster, but I sure couldn’t AND I had the help of my wonderful step-daughter. Without her, I think I would’ve given up.
Anyway, it was from-scratch pasta with a beef/mortadella/prosciutto filling with marinara and béchamel sauces. I think I either made the pasta too thin or I overcooked it (or both) because the pasta was slightly too soft for me. I used the thinnest setting (9), but next time I will use the setting before that one (8).
Neither my husband nor my oldest son cared for the béchamel, but the rest of us loved it. My youngest son, who is also my toughest critic, said he could find no flaws in the dish...I love that boy.
The pasta recipe said it would make 32 cannelloni…I didn’t count the sheets as I made them…I got a LOT more than 32. If I make this again, I’ll stop rolling/cutting the pasta when I get 40 or so. I spent too much time cutting pasta I didn’t need. Also, I think if I were to make this again, I’d make the pasta and the marinara the day before to make it a little easier.
It was a lot of work, more than I expected, but I’m glad I finally got around to making it…that’s one more recipe I can cross off my list. And if I ever decide to make it again, at least I’ll know what I’m getting myself into…
Tammy