Easy cheesy beef cannelloni

Name: Easy cheesy beef cannelloni
Cook time: 30 min
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 300g lean beef mince; 400g low fat ricotta cheese; 2 tb fresh grated parmesan cheese; Handful baby spinach, roughly chopped/torn; 1 packet pasta sheets or 1 quantity of homemade pasta; 400g tin diced tomatoes; 6 large basil leaves or 2 average stalks of basil; 2 stalks fresh oregano; 1 clove garlic; 1 small onion, finely diced; 1/2 cup evaporated skim milk; 1/4 cup light tasty cheese; 1/2 cup light mozzarella cheese

Melissa Klemke

January 12, 2012

Time:< 30 mins

It’s amazing what you achieve with some low fat substitutions – lean beef, low fat cheeses – it’s only 350 calories per serve!

Ingredients

300g lean beef mince
400g low fat ricotta cheese
2 tb fresh grated parmesan cheese
Handful baby spinach, roughly chopped/torn
1 packet pasta sheets or 1 quantity of homemade pasta
400g tin diced tomatoes
6 large basil leaves or 2 average stalks of basil
2 stalks fresh oregano
1 clove garlic
1 small onion, finely diced
1/2 cup evaporated skim milk
1/4 cup light tasty cheese
1/2 cup light mozzarella cheese

Method

The ricotta and evaporated milk give the creamy consistency without the sin!
Preheat oven to 200 degrees. In a bowl mix the mince, ricotta, parmesan and spinach with a bit of salt and pepper.
Layout pasta sheet (I actually cut 1/3 off because you want it to just overlap a bit not a lot) and spread a sausage like line of mixture in the middle.
Roll and lay in a greased baking tray. Continue until you run out of mixture.
In a blender or food processor - blend tomatoes, basil and oregano until liquified, set aside.
In a saucepan, fry onion and garlic until translucent. Add the puree and the evaporated milk, bring to a boil and then pour sauce over your cannelloni.
Sprinkle tasty, mozzarella and remaining parmesan, cover with foil and put in the oven for 30 minutes.
Remove foil and bake for a further 10 minutes.
Melissa Klemke is a freelance writer and a family food enthusiast. She blogs food, fun and frugality of her family of five at Frills in the Hills