Kitchen notes · a little help before you start
Cheese Cannelloni recipe
Soft pasta tubes hold a creamy ricotta and spinach filling beneath warm tomato sauce and melted cheese. A little Parmesan gives the filling a savory edge, and the browned mozzarella on top makes the first scoop especially inviting.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 55 min
- Total
- 70 min
- Original yield
- Serves 6
- Ingredients
- 13 listed
Make it part of your week
Recipe categories & planning details
- Meal type
- Main course
- Cuisine
- American
- Cooking method
- Baking · Baked & roasted
- Preparation & total time
- Prep: 15 minutes or less · Total: over 60 minutes
A few quick notes
1. Sauce goes underneath and on top
The pasta cooks in the baking dish, so that first layer of thinned marinara matters. Spread it across the bottom before adding the filled shells, then cover them with the remaining sauce before baking.
2. Give the shells a little space
Don’t pack the filled cannelloni tightly together. The pasta expands as it bakes, and a bit of room helps the shells cook evenly instead of pressing into one another.
3. Grease the foil lightly
Covering the dish helps the pasta become tender, but the cheese can grab onto the foil. A lightly greased piece of foil keeps more of that melted mozzarella where it belongs.
Get to know the ingredients
Use oven ready cannelloni
These tubes are meant to go into the dish dry. Don’t boil them first. They soften while covered with sauce in the oven, which is why the sauce and water are part of the setup.
Squeeze the spinach dry
Thawed frozen spinach needs a good squeeze before it goes into the ricotta. Extra water would loosen the filling, and you want it thick enough to pipe into the shells.
Parmesan is split
Most of the Parmesan goes into the ricotta filling, with the rest saved for the top. It’s an easy detail to miss once everything is out on the counter.
Let’s make it
Choose your servings, then check things off as you go.
Original recipe: Serves 6. Original quantities shown.
Check ingredients as you prepare them. These checks stay on this page.
How to make it
0 of 5 steps completeMake room for Cheese Cannelloni recipe
Review ingredients in your pantry before anything is added. Meal plans use your household size; grocery-only additions use the servings selected above.
The last little job
The last little job
Once the pasta is tender and the cheese has melted, take off the foil and keep baking just until the top is lightly browned. That final uncovered bake is for color, not for drying out the pasta.
A little more help as you go
A bag makes filling easier
A piping bag or large zip-top bag turns the ricotta mixture into something you can squeeze neatly into the tubes. Snip the end after filling the bag so the mixture stays put until you’re ready.
Watch the pasta
The covered bake is done when the pasta is tender and the cheese is melted. Avoid overbaking; start checking near the earlier end of the baking range.
A few questions you might have
Do I need to cook the cannelloni shells before filling them?
No. Use the oven ready cannelloni dry. They cook in the pan under the sauce and foil, so the sauce coverage is part of what makes them tender.
Why is water mixed into the marinara sauce?
The water loosens the sauce before it goes into the dish. Since the pasta starts dry, that extra moisture helps it soften during the covered bake.
Can I spoon the ricotta filling into the shells instead of piping it?
The directions call for a piping bag or a large zip-top bag with the end snipped off because the filling needs to get evenly into each tube. Squeezing it in is much neater than trying to pack it with a spoon.
How do I know when to remove the foil?
Remove it after the pasta is tender and the cheese has melted. Then bake uncovered only until the cheese is lightly browned.
What should I do with leftovers?
Store baked cheese cannelloni in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer. If frozen, thaw it in the fridge before reheating, then warm it in the oven or microwave until heated all the way through.
Any more cooking tips?
Storage: Baked cheese cannelloni will last in an airtight container in the fridge for 5 days or in the freezer for 3 months. To reheat, thaw in the fridge if frozen, then bake or microwave until heated all the way through.
Storage & reheating safety
For cooked, perishable leftovers, refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), using shallow containers for prompt cooling. Keep the refrigerator at 40°F or below, use refrigerated leftovers within 3–4 days, and reheat hot leftovers to 165°F, checked with a food thermometer. Follow any shorter package limit.
These are general safety limits, not a tested storage or freezing recommendation for this particular dish. USDA leftovers guidance · Safe cooking temperatures
Recipe source: thereciperebel.com. Ingredient names and quantities may be adapted for the pantry.
Preparation notes follow the recipe shown here.