If you are looking for the ultimate comfort food, make this Beef and Cheese Cannelloni soon! Made with fresh Marinara Sauce, ground beef, homemade bechamel sauce and lots of seasonings. The ultimate decadent baked pasta dish.
I’m looking for all my Pasta fans today. I’m telling you, make this Beef and Cheese Cannelloni sometime soon. It’s a great hearty and delicious pasta dish. It’s not a quick and easy dish, but it’s worth all the effort. And you can make it ahead of time and bake it just before you serve it. We enjoyed it just as it is shown, but a fresh salad on the side would go down pretty good as well.
Why You’ll Want To make This Pasta dish
- Make ahead – Although this pasta bake has a lengthy ingredient list and it takes quite a bit of time to put together, you can make it well in advance. Just cover, store in the fridge and you can bake just before serving.
- Delicious – This dish is full of flavour, hearty, decadent and so much more!
- Family favourite – it’s an absolute crowd pleaser and everyone will love it. A great recipe to double and feed a crowd.
Ingredients
- Ground beef – I used regular ground beef for the filling in this recipe.
- Marinara sauce – I used Homemade Marinara Sauce but any pasta sauce is fine.
- Fresh ingredients – Small white onion, Roma tomatoes and fresh garlic. All of these ingredients are used in the cannelloni filling to give a fresh flavour.
- Olive oil – this is used for cooking the onions and tomatoes.
- Seasonings – I used dried oregano, dried basil, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper in this recipe.
- Fresh herbs – I used a small amount of fresh chopped parsley in this cannelloni dish.
- Butter – is used in making a roux for the bechamel sauce
- Flour – is used as a thickening agent in making the bechamel sauce
- Milk – I used whole milk as the base for the bechamel sauce.
- Cheese – I used a mix of cheese for this sauce, it added a fantastic flavour. This recipe uses, Gouda, Mozzarella and Parmesan.
- Cannelloni tubes – These come in different sizes. I used small cannelloni tubes and layered them into a casserole dish.
REMEMBER, The full recipe and ingredient list is at the end of the post in the recipe card.
Instructions
- Cook onions and tomatoes – In a large skillet set over medium to high heat add the olive oil, garlic and onions. Cook, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes until soft. Add the diced tomatoes and give a good stir. Cook for a further 5 minutes until the tomatoes are soft.
- Cook ground beef – Add the ground beef and using a wooden spoon, break up the ground beef as it cooks. Cook beef for about 10 minutes until it is fully cooked. Add half of the dried basil, half of the dried oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Stir really well and add 3 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce (reserve 1/2 cup of marinara sauce). Leave to simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Make the bechamel sauce – In a heavy bottomed saucepan set over a medium heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and whisk until a paste forms, about 30 seconds. Gradually pour in the milk, whisk as you pour. Once you have added in all the milk you should have a smooth and slightly thickened sauce. Add the grated cheese, reserving 1/2 cup of the Mozzarella to top the dish. Stir the sauce until it becomes a smooth and thick sauce. Add remaining dried basil, dried oregano and fresh parsley. Stir and remove from heat.
- Preheat oven – Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Have ready a 8 x 10 inch deep sided baking dish. Spoon the remaining 1/2 cup of marinara sauce on the bottom of the dish and coat the bottom of the dish.
- Fill the cannelloni tubes – Place the cannelloni filling into a pastry bag. Fill each tube by squeezing the filling in from the pastry bag. Lay filled tubes into the baking dish until bottom of baking dish is covered. Pour over half of the bechamel sauce. Fill remaining cannelloni tubes and make a second layer. Evenly pour over remaining bechamel sauce. Sprinkle over reserved 1/2 cup of grated mozzarella cheese.
- Bake – Bake between 30 – 35 minutes or until golden and bubbly. Serve hot.
Recipe Tips
- Read entire recipe before starting – This recipe has many ingredients and different steps. I strongly recommend reading the entire recipe before starting to cook or prepare food.
- Get everything ready before starting – I always like to get all of my ingredients, utensils, cooking pans and anything else I may need to use before starting to cook any recipe.
- Reserved or divided ingredients – There are several ingredients in this recipe that are divided (this means they are used in several stages of the recipe). Please, read the recipe card carefully.
- How to fill cannelloni tubes – the best way to fill cannelloni tubes is by putting the filling in a pastry bag. Then you can easily fill the tubes.
Substitutions
- Ground beef – My choice for this recipe was ground beef, but you can use ground pork, chicken or turkey.
- Marinara Sauce – You can use homemade Marinara Sauce or store bought sauce. Any kind of pasta sauce will work for this recipe.
- Cheese – I used a mix of Gouda, Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese this recipe. You can easily use just one kind of cheese or you can add different flavours like sharp cheddar, Havarti, Edam or Swiss cheese.
- Cannelloni tubes – I used small cannelloni tubes size 10 cm long and 2 cm in diameter. You can use larger cannelloni tubes. Just keep in mind, if you use large cannelloni tubes, you may only have one layer in your baking dish.
- Fresh herbs – For this recipe I used fresh parsley in the bechamel sauce. You could easily go for a different flavour and use fresh basil.
What To Serve with the Cannelloni
- Garlic Knots
- Fluffy White Dinner Rolls
- Cheesy Garlic Fingers
- Classic Caprese Salad
- Spinach & Herb Stuffed Tomatoes
Frequently Asked Question
Do I need to pre cook cannelloni tubes before filling them?
You do not need to pre cook cannelloni tubes. They will cook in their sauce and filling in the oven.
What’s the difference between cannelloni and Manicotti?
Both are very similar in that they are pasta tubes that you fill. Cannelloni is generally smooth pasta and they are smaller and the pasta is thinner. Manicotti is normally larger and the pasta rigid and thicker.
Get the recipe!
Three Cheese Beef Cannelloni
If you are looking for the ultimate comfort food, make this Beef and Cheese Cannelloni soon! Made with fresh Marinara Sauce, ground beef, homemade bechamel sauce and lots of seasonings. The ultimate decadent baked pasta dish.
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 787kcal
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 4 Cups Marinara sauce
- 1 small onion diced small
- 2 whole tomatoes diced small
- 4 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoons oregano divided
- 2 teaspoons basil divided
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- Sea salt
- Black pepper
- Small bunch of fresh chopped parsley divided
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 2 1/2 cups milk
- 1 Cup gouda cheese grated
- 1 Cup mozzarella cheese grated and divided
- 1/4 Cup parmesan cheese grated
- 24 small cannelloni tubes
Instructions
- Make the cannelloni filling. In a large skillet set over medium to high heat add the olive oil, garlic and onions. Cook, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes until soft. Add the diced tomatoes and give a good stir. Cook for a further 5 minutes until the tomatoes are soft.
- Add the ground beef and using a wooden spoon, break up the ground beef as it cooks. Cook beef for about 10 minutes until it is fully cooked. Add half of the dried basil, half of the dried oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Stir really well and add 3 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce (reserve 1/2 cup of marinara sauce). Leave to simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Make the bechamel sauce. In a heavy bottomed saucepan set over a medium heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and whisk until a paste forms, about 30 seconds. Gradually pour in the milk, whisk as you pour. Once you have added in all the milk you should have a smooth and slightly thickened sauce.. Add the grated cheese, reserving 1/2 cup of the Mozzarella to top the dish. Stir the sauce until it becomes a smooth and thick sauce. Add remaining dried basil, dried oregano and fresh parsley. Stir and remove from heat.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Have ready a 8 x 10 inch deep sided baking dish. Spoon the remaining 1/2 cup of marinara sauce on the bottom of the dish and coat the bottom of the dish.
- Fill the cannelloni tubes. Place the cannelloni filling into a pastry bag. Fill each tube by squeezing the filling in from the pastry bag. Lay filled tubes into the baking dish until bottom of baking dish is covered. Pour over half of the bechamel sauce. Fill remaining cannelloni tubes and make a second layer. Evenly pour over remaining bechamel sauce. Top with reserved 1/2 cup of grated mozzarella.
- Bake between 30 – 35 minutes or until golden and bubbly. Serve hot.
*A note on times provided: appliances vary, any prep and/or cook times provided are estimates only.
Notes
- Read entire recipe before starting – This recipe has many ingredients and different steps. I strongly recommend reading the entire recipe before starting to cook or prepare food.
- Get everything ready before starting – I always like to get all of my ingredients, utensils, cooking pans and anything else I may need to use before starting to cook any recipe.
- Reserved or divided ingredients – There are several ingredients in this recipe that are divided (this means they are used in several stages of the recipe). Please, read the recipe card carefully.
- How to fill cannelloni tubes – the best way to fill cannelloni tubes is by putting the filling in a pastry bag. Then you can easily fill the tubes.
Nutrition Facts
Three Cheese Beef Cannelloni
Amount Per Serving (1 serving)
Calories 787
Calories from Fat 396
% Daily Value*
Fat 44g68%
Saturated Fat 21g131%
Cholesterol 132mg44%
Sodium 1498mg65%
Potassium 1261mg36%
Carbohydrates 90g30%
Fiber 6g25%
Sugar 16g18%
Protein 47g94%
Vitamin A 1337IU27%
Vitamin C 14mg17%
Calcium 602mg60%
Iron 5mg28%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Thanks For Stopping By & Hope To see You Soon!
I can’t find cannelloni anywhere. Can I substitute dried manicotti? Would I have to cook it first?
Yes, you can use manicotti no problem. You won’t need to cook it before hand. Just stuff them uncooked. Hope this helps.
I’d like to make this, however there are only 2 of us. Obviously, it’s too much for the 2 of us. How would I freeze? Before baking or after?
Hi Barry, I’d freeze it before baking. Then when you want to cook it, allow it to defrost in the fridge overnight and bake according to the recipe. I hope this helps.