Chicken Cannelloni with Cheese Sauce
Submitted by panja
Rolled lasagna noodles stuffed with seasoned chicken, spinach and mushrooms, smothered in a creamy Parmesan cheese sauce and broiled until golden. A make-ahead Italian comfort classic.
YIELD
1 casserolePREP
65 minCOOK
25 minREADY
90 minPicture this: tender lasagna noodles wrapped around a savory filling of chicken, earthy mushrooms, and fresh spinach, all blanketed under a rich, velvety Parmesan cheese sauce.
This is the kind of dish that makes the whole house smell like an Italian grandmother’s kitchen.
The beauty here is that you prep it the night before, stash it in the fridge, and just broil it when you’re ready to eat. Weeknight elegance without the weeknight stress.
You can even skip the rolling and layer everything like a lasagna if you’re short on time or patience (no judgment).
Chef Tips
- Wipe cooked lasagna noodles dry before filling to prevent soggy cannelloni
- Pulse the chicken in a food processor just until it resembles tuna salad, not paste
- Cook the flour in the butter for a full 2 minutes before adding liquid to eliminate that raw flour taste
- Alternate strips of white cheese sauce and red spaghetti sauce across the top for a restaurant-worthy presentation
Ingredients
Directions
The night before: Cook lasagna noodles in 6 qts. boiling water for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender; drain, wipe noodles dry with a clean/dry cloth, lay flat on waxed paper.
While noodles are cooking, melt butter and olive oil in a large skillet.
Sauté onion, garlic and mushrooms until they’re tender; add remove from heat; set aside.
Place cooked chicken in food processor and pulse until chicken resembles a tuna salad mixture.
Combine chicken with the onions, garlic, mushrooms and the fat in which they were sautéed; add egg, cream and seasonings.
Add spinach (cooked) and mix well.
Cut each lasagna noodle into 2 or 3 pieces--each piece should be 3 to 4 inches long; place a tablespoonful of the chicken filling on each piece and roll into a tubular shape.
If you don’t want to make canneloni, just layer the ingredients like you would for lasagna.
Arrange rolls next to each other, one layer deep, in a buttered baking dish ; set aside while you prepare the cheese sauce.
CHEESE SAUCE: Melt butter then add the flour and cook for a few minutes to get rid of the floury taste.
Gradually add the chicken broth, whisking constantly to prevent lumps; add cream, salt and pepper.
Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened and smooth; remove from heat.
Stir in ¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese and mix well.
Spoon over a strip of the white sauce, next to it I spoon on some red; keep doing that across the dish until the sauce covers the noodles.
The red/white pattern makes it look pretty and gives the dish a little more flavor.
Spoon sauce over cannelloni in baking dish; sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese and Mozzarella cheese, if used; refrigerate until you’re ready to bake it.
BEFORE SERVING: Preheat broiler; place cannelloni 4 to 5 inches from heat and broil for 10 minutes or until sauce bubbles and top browns.
If you’ll be making lasagna, bake in a 350-degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until it’s bubbly and the top is browned a bit.
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