Spinach and ricotta cannelloni

Spinach and ricotta cannelloni
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This is one of those family favorites. A dish I like to prepare in advance and bake on the day. It makes a complete meal, and it's vegetarian too! Using a piping bag might seem fiddly, but I think it is totally worth it!
Servings Prep Time
4 people 30 minutes
Cook Time Passive Time
20 minutes 10 minutes
Servings Prep Time
4 people 30 minutes
Cook Time Passive Time
20 minutes 10 minutes
Spinach and ricotta cannelloni
Print Recipe
This is one of those family favorites. A dish I like to prepare in advance and bake on the day. It makes a complete meal, and it's vegetarian too! Using a piping bag might seem fiddly, but I think it is totally worth it!
Servings Prep Time
4 people 30 minutes
Cook Time Passive Time
20 minutes 10 minutes
Servings Prep Time
4 people 30 minutes
Cook Time Passive Time
20 minutes 10 minutes
Ingredients
Filling
Sauce
Main
Servings: people
Instructions
Make your sauce
  1. Gently fry your onion and garlic in the olive oil until soft.
  2. Add the herbs and fry for one minute before adding the white wine. Cook off the alcohol in 2 minutes.
  3. Add the tomatoes and let the sauce simmer while you prepare the canneloni. Season to taste
Fill your canneloni
  1. Combine the ingredients for the stuffing and season to taste.
  2. Fill your cannelloni using a piping bag or a small spoon.
Build your dish
  1. Preheat your oven to 220 degrees centegrade,
  2. Spoon a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of an oven proof dish.
  3. Line the canneloni in your ovenproof dish.
  4. Cover with the remaining sauce and sprinkle with parmesan.
  5. Place in the oven for 20 minutes or until golden and crispy on top.
  6. Let your dish stand for 10 minutes after removing it from the oven.
Recipe Notes

Instead of using spinach you could use 3 tablespoons of pesto or my rocking rocket pesto.

Find more oven bakes here.

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Eggplant lasagna

This is a great vegetarian family meal. My son will eat anything covered in tomatoe sauce. The melted cheese on top combined with the crispy topping will seduce any vegetable sceptic.

It is essentially a lasagna with grilled eggplant instead of pasta sheets. It makes a great lunch or dinner when combined with a salad.

EggplantLasagna3

Eggplant lasagna (3 person meal)

  • 2 eggplants, in long 5 mm strips
  • 500 ml italian tomato sauce (your own recipe, mine or from the shop)
  • 200 gr kwark or cottage cheese
  • olive oil for frying
  • 250 gr mozzerella and/or dutch cheese in slices
  • Optional for a crust: 2 cups of bread crumbs and 75 gr butter
  1. Cut your eggplant in slices, season them on each side and lightly oil them.
  2. Fry your eggplant slices in a skillet on each side.
  3. Make layers:
    1. Tomato sauce
    2. Eggplant slices
    3. Kwark
    4. Eggplant
    5. Tomato sauce
    6. Eggplant
    7. Kwark
    8. Eggplant
    9. Tomato sauce
    10. Cheese slices
    11. Optional, for a crispy top: Sprinkle on bread crumbs and devide knobs of butter over the crumbs.
  4. You can store this dish in your fridge or bake it right away in a 220 degrees C oven for 20 minutes.

EggplantLasagna2

Together with a Dutch ceasar salad, this makes a great vegetarian meal.

Read more about oven dishes here.

 

Gnocchi bake

This dish may take you 40 minutes to make, but it is less than 10 minutes work to prepare. You can even create the whole bake a day or two in advance. Which means any person who can operate an oven can finish the dish when you want to eat it.

Gnocchi is a kind of pasta made from potatoes, which gives them a great chewy texture. I like making this pasta myself, but this dish is my “go to” when I want an easy meal.

If you have little oven dishes. You could also make individual servings.

I like to serve a green salad with this dish for some extra veg.

Gnocchi bake (3 portions)

  • 500 grams of gnocchi (1 pack)
  • 400 grams of my no fuss tomato sauce
  • 100 grams of cheese, pick your favorite melting cheese: grated Dutch cheese, cubes of blue cheese and/or mozzerella
  1. Boil the gnocchi for a couple of minutes, your gnocchi is cooked when it floats on the surface.
  2. Strain the gnocchi and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.
  3. Mix the gnocchi and tomato sauce.
  4. Top with cheese.
  5. Now your bake is ready for the oven, or for your fridge.
  6. Bake in the oven at 220 degrees C for 30 minutes or until bubbly and golden.

Find more oven bakes here or more Italian dishes.

Quick and easy mini veggi pizza

This is not a recipe for real pizza (Read more about pizza dough and pizza toppings). These mini pizza are delicious glutenfree vegetable bites. My son loves making these and having them for dinner. But they would also make a great party treat or be part of a great high tea.MiniPizza2

Once you have sliced your ingredients, you can assemble these mini pizzas with your toddler.

MiniPizza3

Mini veggi pizza’s

  • Eggplant/aubergine in 5 mm slices
  • 1 cup of my no fuss Tomato sauce / or a jar of ready made sauce
  • 1 cup of grated Parmesan
  • 1 mozzarella cheese ball in slices
  • 1 tomato in small cubes
  • optional: 1 onion in small cubes
  • Oregano

Lay your eggplant slices on a baking sheet. Spoon a small spoon of sauce on each slice. Sprinkle with some oregano, then add your tomato and union. Sprinkle with Parmesan and top with a small slice of mozzarella.

Bake in a 220 degrees C oven for 15 minutes and enjoy!

MiniPizza4

We tried this recipe with courgette as well, this worked fine but we just love eggplant more.

Read more about cooking with toddlers here.

Flower salad

For a beautiful salad follow these 3 steps.

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Summer salad

1. Mix the following ingredients in quantities suited to your taste buds.

  • Butter lettuce – ripped into bite size pieces
  • Lamb’s lettuce
  • Spring onions
  • Mixed colors tomatoes in chunks
  • Blue cheese in cubes

2. Dress with olive oil and fresh lemon juice

3. Garnish with freshly picked viola’s.

Be careful to use viola’s from plants you grew yourself, or make sure that you know how the plants were cultivated. Growers may use pesticides or fertilizers not fit for human consumption.

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Read more about edible flowers here.

Pizza Angry Monkey

AngryPizza2My husband named this pizza and it is his idea of food heaven. You can make this pizza using the dough I described in the Perfect Pizza Peluzza. Angry is a reference to the chilies used in this pizza, giving it a kick. And monkey is a reference to the primal state your husband will be in while he waits for this pizza.

Please remember not to put to many ingredients on your pizza, it should be a thin slice of goodness that cooks in a short amount of time. This recipe is for 1 pizza, feel free to make many more and discover your own favorite pizza.

Pizza Angry Monkey

  • Pizza doughAngryIngredients
  • 1 cup of tinned, diced tomatoes
  • grated cheese (I use Gouda because I’m dutch, but any hard neutral cheese would do)
  • 3-5 slices of mozzarella
  • 3-5 slices of tomato
  • 1 tbsp oregano
  • 5 sliced button mushrooms
  • half an onion in rings
  • 3-5 slices of salami
  • 2 chilies (jalapeno or regular red chilies) in rings
  • 1 finely sliced garlic clove
  • 3 tbsp olive oil

Preheat your oven to 220 degrees C. Make sure it is well and hot before placing the pizza in, as this guarantees the best crust.

Combine the olive oil and garlic and set aside for after baking.

GarlicOil

Roll out your dough to a 30 cm diameter. Prick the bottom thoroughly with a fork. This prevents the dough from puffing up under the topping, and pushing your topping of.

Place your pizza base on the oven plate. Spread the tinned tomatoes over the pizza. Generously season this sauce. Sprinkle with oregano, then with cheese.

Evenly spread out layers of Mozzarella, fresh tomatoes, mushrooms, salami, onion and chili slices.

Bake your pizza for 10 to 20 minutes. Brush your pizza crust with the garlic oil and crack fresh black pepper on top….. and enjoy!

AngrPizza2By the way, pizza’s are a great recipe to make with your toddler.