Mushroom and ricotta cannelloni is a delicious and comforting dish that combines earthy mushrooms, creamy ricotta cheese, and flavorful tomato sauce. This classic Italian pasta dish is simple, comforting, and belly-warming. Perfect for a cozy night in or for serving at a dinner party. Tubes of pasta filled with the combination of savory mushrooms and rich ricotta cheese creates a scrumptious meal that is sure to please even the pickiest of eaters.
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Mushroom and Herbed Ricotta Cannelloni
Cannelloni is a type of cylindrical pasta generally served baked with a filling and covered in sauce.
It can be found in the pasta aisle of most well-stocked grocery aisles.
Originating from Italy, it usually comes stuffed with meat or cheese such as ricotta, is topped off with a rice tomato sauce and parmesan and then baked to gooey perfection.
This version uses a combination of mushrooms and herbed ricotta, for a savory filling that will be sure to knock your socks off in terms of flavor.
Ingredients
For this recipe, you are going to need:
- premade cannelloni shells: these can be found in the pasta aisle of well-stocked grocery stores. Alternatively, you can make your own using fresh pasta, or you can boil lasagna sheets and roll the ricotta mixture in them to make cannelloni shells;
- marinara sauce or a rich passata: buy a good quality sauce, you will be able to taste the difference. You can also use a homemade version like this fresh heirloom tomato sauce;
- extra virgin olive oil: choose a good quality olive oil if you can;
- fresh garlic;
- white button mushrooms: you can use any other mushroom variety you prefer, this goes especially well with Swiss brown mushrooms, however, they can be a bit more expensive;
- fresh parsley and thyme: fresh is best, but you can get away with dried herbs in a pinch;
- fresh ricotta cheese: this is a soft cheese that can usually be found in the cheese section beside cottage cheese and cream cheese;
- Parmigiano Reggiano cheese: this will need to be grated, try to avoid buying the pre-grated cheese, as that can have an almost chalky texture to it due to the preservatives included. To save money, you can swap this for regular parmesan cheese.
Assembling and Baking Your Cannelloni
To make the mushroom and ricotta cannelloni, start by sautéing chopped mushrooms in olive oil until they are browned and tender and most of the liquid has evaporated from the pan.
In a separate bowl, mix the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, garlic, salt, pepper, and fresh herbs.
Spread a layer of the marinara sauce on the bottom of a baking dish or a skillet like I use in these photos.
Spoon the mushroom mixture into the cooked cannelloni shells, and place the filled cannelloni into the baking dish on top of the marinara sauce.
Pour more marinara sauce over the top of the cannelloni and sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil and bake in the oven until heated through and bubbly.
Serving Suggestions and Side Dishes
Serve your mushroom and ricotta cannelloni with a side salad or some crusty bread for a complete meal that will satisfy even the pickiest eaters.
I like to pop some extra grated parmesan on the table for the cheese lovers.
This dish is sure to become a favorite in your household!
Happy Eating
xx
Recipe
Mushroom and Herbed Ricotta Cannelloni
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Ingredients
- 1 box cannelloni shells or homemade if you have the time
- 2 cups marinara sauce of choice or 1 jar
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 4 cups white button mushrooms chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme chopped
- 1 ½ cups fresh ricotta cheese
- 1 cup parmigiano reggiano cheese grated and divided into two
- 2 tablespoon water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F
- Cook pasta according to the directions on the box. If you are using fresh pasta, it does not need to be pre-cooked
- Heat olive oil in a skillet over a medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until it becomes aromatic, but has not browned. Add in the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper. Cook until browned
- While the mushrooms are cooking, mix the ricotta with the chopped parsley and thyme. Once the mushrooms are browned add them to the ricotta mixture, along with half of the parmigiano. Season with salt and pepper and stir well to combine
- Stuff the cannelloni tubes with the mixture (see notes for a tip)
- In the same skillet you used for cooking the mushrooms, add half of the marinara sauce and the water. Arrange the cannelloni on top of the sauce, and then top that with the remaining sauce and the rest of the parmigiano
- Cover with aluminium foil and pop into the oven for 30 minutes
Nutrition
Anne Murphy says
I love that they had gnocchi on a children's menu! Most of those things are so limited (and boring!) but it still makes sense to give a small child a small portion, and...
And your cannelloni sound easy and delicious. Wonderful!
Donna1 says
I know right? Kids menus can be so uninspiring, and my little foodies end up sharing something from the 'mommies menu' as they never want the chicken nuggets and fries 🙂
Martin Mraz says
Are the ounces weight or volume? There's no way to tell!!!
Donna1 says
Hi Martin, thanks for the question. I have converted the recipe to cups to avoid confusion. Hope that helps.
Jane says
These were fantastic! I needed a cannelloni recipe that didn't require spinach. I do love spinach, but, well, because of that we didn't have any left.... Anyhow, I made these last night and they were a hit! No leftovers.
By the way, I tried to rate this recipe as a 5, but I can't determine whether or not I was successful in that endeavor.
Donna1 says
Oh thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment Jane, I am glad they worked so well for you! It is still one of our favourite dishes around here!!
Cynthia @craftoflaughter says
Shopping for ingredients this morning!!
Thalia @ butter and brioche says
Love love love cannelloni! This looks so simple, cheesy and delicious. Yum.
Whole Food Bellies says
Thanks Thalia! It is definitely simple (I got my husband to try it without me, and it went off without a glitch), and so so yummy!
lifestyletalks.wordpress.com says
Waw! This looks SO delicious! And i love pasta, mushrooms, garlic,....got to try this!
Kate says
I JUST had dinner, and you've got my mouth watering with this post! We LOVE Italian food in our house (as long as I've got TUMS nearby!), so I must give this a try soon!
Ros Emely@stressfreemommies says
Oh wow! These look so yum, I love pasta, so this recipe is right up my alley 😉
Whole Food Bellies says
Thanks Ros! I am a HUGE pasta fan too (especially on weeknights) 🙂
Julie Lichtman says
Drooling right now!! This looks amazing!
Whole Food Bellies says
Haha thanks Julie!
Madiha Nawaz says
Really delicious looking dish! Would love to try it soon 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
Whole Food Bellies says
Thanks so much Madiha! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
shernell says
This dish looks supper delicious, I would definitely like to try this dish. I love how you gave step by step instructions as well. It makes it much easier to make in my own kitchen.
Whole Food Bellies says
Thanks Shernell 🙂 I am glad you like the instructions, I try to make it easy for people that haven't made something like that before!
Patricia @ Grab a Plate says
Your version looks soooo amazing! Love when we can be inspired to create restaurant-style dishes at home! Love it!
Tirralan - Tinseltown Mom says
I love this recipe. I wish I could make it in it's entirely, but my hubby is lactose intolerant, so I'd have to try it without the cheese.
Sandhya says
I am a big fan of mushrooms and your recipe with mushrooms and ricotta cheese sounds delicious!
Traditionallymodernfood says
pasta flavours are perfect..yum yum
Kat from curlsnchard.com says
Those cannelloni sound so delicious <3 And I love when restaurants have a really good kids menu as well! Kids like to eat good food too, some restaurants just seem to forget that 🙂
Allison Gallagher says
I have a total love affair with anything that has ricotta....if it's ricotta and pasta, even better. This looks absolutely delicious and now I totally have to try it out.
Whole Food Bellies says
Haha thanks Allison! I LOVE ricotta too - so so versatile (and delicious)
Jolly says
Very well explained post.... cannelloni looks so yummy 🙂
Whole Food Bellies says
Thanks Jolly 🙂
Crystal says
Mushrooms and ricotta cheese are two of my absolute favorites! Looks super yummy!
Whole Food Bellies says
Me too Crystal 🙂
Chrissa - Physical Kitchness says
Ok wow, this looks amazing. My pasta-loving hubby would devour this! Great recipe!
Whole Food Bellies says
Thanks so much Chrissa 🙂 My hubby ate a LOT of it!