Recipe of the Week – 2nd September 2019 – Spinach and Ricotta Conchiglioni and Aubergine Bake

This is the result of my experimenting on the classic Italian dish Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni, which provides a bit more texture and variation of flavours. I found the addition of toasted cashew nuts worked really well, and stuffing the pasta shells certainly kept the kids amused for a while!

Serves 6

Ingredients

400g Durum Wheat Conchiglioni Rigati shells

150g Ricotta cheese

100g fresh baby spinach, finely chopped

50g cashew nuts, lightly toasted then finely chopped

2 tsp dried basil

2 large aubergines, cut widthways into 1cm wide discs

4 tbs olive oil

1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes

1 tbs good quality vegetarian green pesto

200ml passata

50g cheddar cheese, grated

Method

1. Place the pasta in a large pan of boiling salted water, bring to the boil then simmer for 5 minutes only. Drain, rinse and set aside.

2. Slice the aubergines and put in a large bowl and salt well. Leave for 30 minutes then rinse and drain.

3. Meanwhile, place the Ricotta, chopped spinach, basil, cashew nuts, and salt and pepper to taste, in a large boil and mix well to combine.

4. Stuff the shells with the mixture and set aside.

5. Preheat the oven to 190C.

6. Put half the olive oil in a large frying pan on a high heat and fry half of the aubergine slices until light brown, turning once. Set aside and repeat with the remaining oil and slices.

7. Add the tinned tomatoes, pesto and passata to a large saucepan and simmer gently for 5 minutes.

8. Ladle a small amount of the tomato sauce on the bottom of a large casserole dish then layer half of the aubergine slices followed by half of the pasta shells. Repeat with the aubergine then the shells and pour the remaining sauce over the top, ensuring that everything is covered. Finally, top with the grated cheese and place in the oven for 25 minutes. Serve immediately with garlic bread or a green salad.