Canelones is a traditional Spanish (Castellan) recipe for a classic dish of stuffed canneloni pasta tubes cooked in a béchamel sauce. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Spanish version of: Canelones.
(click this button to prevent the screen from sleeping so Cook Mode is 'ON')
Canelones, the Spanish version of Cannelloni are very popular in Castellan where they appear as a starter on special occasions, like Christmas Eve, when they may boast a more luxurious filling of prawns or lobster. The recipe presented here is more frequently enjoyed on Boxing Day (December 26th) when they are normally stuffed with the roasted meat leftovers from the previous day.
Ingredients:
20 squares (about) of cannelloni pasta
2 tbsp salted butter
225g minced veal
225g minced pork
85g Jamon Serrano or prosciutto, finely chopped
250ml whole milk
1 tbsp flour
90g grated parmesan cheese plus 25g for topping
15g black truffle, very finely chopped
Pinch of salt
Dash of black pepper
Pinch of nutmeg
1 egg, beaten
For the Béchamel sauce:
1l milk
5 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour
½ tsp grated nutmeg
2 tsp sea salt
Method:
Pre-heat your oven to 180C.
Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Add the salt , and one by one drop in the pasta sheets. Cooking until al dente, (about 12-14 minutes). Drain the water, and move the pasta to a cheese cloth to cool and drain. Set aside.
In a large pan, heat the butter over a high flame until it melts and becomes foamy. Add the veal and pork and cook on high until it is completely browned. Add the jamon, cooking until it softens. Drain the excess fat from the pan then add the milk, flour and parmesan, combine well. Add the truffles, salt, pepper, nutmeg, combine and bring to a simmer. Cook for 10-12 minutes, stirring often. Take the pan off the heat, and set aside it cool then stir in the egg.
Once the meat is cool enough to handle, evenly divide the mixture between the pasta. Put the mixture at one end, and roll the pasta up. (If you are using pre-shaped pasta tubes, simply stuff them with the mixture.) Arrange the pasta rolls in a 22cm square baking dish, setting them in a single layer.
In the meantime, prepare the béchamel sauce:Heat the milk in a medium-sized pan until almost boiling, being careful not to scorch the bottom. Melt the butter in another medium-sized saucepan. Slowly work in the flour, stirring constantly to eliminate any lumps.
Continue cooking until the flour is light-golden in colour, (about 5-6 minutes). Very slowly add the hot milk to pan with the flour roux, rapidly whisking until smooth. Season to taste with salt, black pepper and nutmeg, continuing to whisk until the sauce comes to a boil. Immediately remove from the heat.
Cover the canelones with the Béchamel sauce (method below), and top with the remaining parmesan cheese. Bake for 25 minutes in your pre-heated oven, until the top of the dish is bubbling and the cheese is crispy and golden brown.
Click on the image, above to submit to Pinterest.