Festive Cannelloni with Tofu Ricotta and Pumpkin Spinach (gluten free)

This week is book review week in my scheduled blogs and I have decided to review my own Cook Book Veet’s Cuisine Delicious Vegan Recipes.

Yes I love my own cookbook, cooking many of the recipes on the retreats that I catered on over the last ten years. The recipes are simple, all gluten free, all vegan and all delicious. There are over 150 recipes including how to make cashew cheese and sour cream. Also Indian feast recipes, four types of lasagnes, a Balinese feast, many other main dishes, soups, salads, dressings, desserts, drinks, vegetable dishes and a dedicated grain section. As well as a pantry list and a protein guide.

The cookbook is printed locally at Mullumbimby printworks where Syd and Jane guarantee ethical paper and ink. This unfortunately means I cannot afford to print it in colour so there are no photos in the book. I know many people only like cook books with photos but I personally love cookbooks with no photos, as I have nothing to compare with when I make the recipe. However you cook the recipe is however it is supposed to look. I love everyone’s take on how the recipes in my book look.

So if you are wanting to treat yourself to one of my cookbooks you can buy them locally in Santos Wholefoods Mullumbimby or order them through my website.

This week I am sharing a recipe that has bits and pieces taken from my book. In one of the Vegan Foundation Cooking Courses this year Lucy and Chloe decided they wanted to make a cannelloni for their signature dish. So they made a lasagne recipe from a few ideas in the book and some ideas they had themselves. We can’t get gluten free organic cannelloni tubes so I thought we could make them using lasagne sheets and they worked perfectly.

I think this cannelloni recipe is perfect for Christmas day or other festivities at this time of the year. A lot of the recipes I see around for Christmas are ones based on a traditional English Christmas. However there are plenty of other types of Christmas fare. Having spent five Christmases with an Italian family I know that Christmas wasn’t the same if there wasn’t some sort of pasta on the menu.

Two versions of this recipe are shared with you. The first is the original cannelloni Lucy and Chloe made with a spinach and pumpkin filling as well as a tofu ricotta. Then an additional layer of mushroom and walnut mince that Mel and Naomi decided to make when they chose to make cannelloni for their signature dish in the last Vegan Foundation Cooking Course.

I hope you enjoy making and eating it and please send me photos when you do as I love to see your creations.

Festive Cannelloni with Tofu Ricotta & Pumpkin Spinach (gluten free)

(For the tofu filling it is easier to have it in a piping bag)

Ingredients

1 packet gluten free lasagne sheets (approximately 9 lasagne sheets)

Sauce

10 tomatoes diced

2 onions diced

4 garlic cloves minced

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp salt or to taste

Pepper to taste

1 tbsp of fresh thyme finely chopped

2 tbsp fresh oregano finely chopped

4 sundried tomatoes sliced

Spinach Pumpkin Filling

½ medium pumpkin cut into chunks with skin removed

2 bunches spinach or silverbeet

1 tbsp vegan butter (optional)

Pinch salt

Pinch nutmeg

Tofu Ricotta Filling

700g firm tofu

2 tsp salt or to taste

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

2 tbsp lemon juice or more

Pepita sprinkle

Pepita Sprinkle recipe

Garnish

1 bunch asparagus thinly cut lengthways (if available)

300g cherry tomatoes cut in halves

Optional Mushroom and Walnut layer

400g mushrooms cut in quarters and placed in a food processor and pulsed

¾ cup toasted walnuts chopped finely

Salt and pepper

squeeze of lemon

½ tbsp olive oil

Method

For the sauce, place the tomatoes, onion, garlic, olive oil, herbs, sundried tomatoes, salt and pepper in a saucepan with the lid on and cook until the tomatoes have broken down. Then remove the lid and let simmer for 25 minutes. Let cool and with a stick blender, blend the sauce till quite smooth.
For the pumpkin spinach filling, boil the pumpkin until soft. Mash the pumpkin adding a pinch of salt and nutmeg and the vegan butter. Place the washed spinach in a dry saucepan and wilt it for a few minutes or longer for silverbeet. Strain and when cooled slice it up small. Add the spinach with the pumpkin.
For the tofu filling, place all the ingredients in a food processor and taste to see if it needs more salt and lemon.
For the optional mushroom layer, fry the mushrooms in the oil, adding salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes then mix in the walnuts and squeeze on the lemon juice.

To Assemble

Line a baking tray with a clean tea towel.
Have a baking dish ready with a thin layer of tomato sauce.
Heat up a large saucepan of salted boiling water and place 2 to 3 lasagne sheets in the water. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes or until soft and pliable but not quite al-dente cooked. Remove the lasagne sheets and place on the clean tea towel. Add more lasagne sheets and follow the above process until you have the right amount of sheets that you need. Cut each lasagne in half (width ways).
Place the tofu ricotta in the piping bag. Place a half sheet of lasagne on your work surface and with a teaspoon place a line of the spinach and pumpkin mixture at the end of the sheet and then pipe on a row of the tofu ricotta. Roll up the sheet into a tube and place seam side down in the baking dish with the tomato sauce in it. Continue filling all of the lasagne sheets.
If using the mushroom walnut layer add that on the top of the cannelloni tubes. Then pour on the tomato sauce and sprinkle with the pepita sprinkle. Add the asparagus spears and the cherry tomatoes.
Place in the oven for 20 minutes or until heated through and the cannelloni tubes are nice and al-dente.

# If you make this recipe please share on facebook or instagram to #veetsvegancookingschool

Three Places Left in January Vegan Foundation Courses

There are still 2 places left in the January 9th to 11th Vegan Foundation Cooking Course and 1 place has recently become available for the 16th to 18th January Vegan Foundation Cooking Course. What a great way to start 2020 with a vegan cooking course that will set you up for a year and beyond of fabulous vegan cooking.

Early Bird Pricing Running Out

The early bird pricing for individual modules 2 to 5, and the pricing for people wanting to complete either module 2 to 5 or 2 to 9 ends on the 14th December. That is a few short days away. Please contact me as soon as possible if you would like to make the most of these discounts.

Modules 2 to 5

Full Price

$4862 if paid a module at a time

First Round Early Bird

$4462 if paid BEFORE the 14th December 2019 (saving $400)

Second Round Early Bird

$4662 if paid BEFORE the 31st January 2020 (saving $200)

Modules 2 to 9

Full Price

$12,336.50 if paid AFTER 1st March 2020

First Round Early Bird

$10,486.50 if paid BEFORE 14th December 2019 (save $1850)