Chicken, Spinach and Artichoke Cannelloni is elegant enough for a special dinner for two. Flat, no-boil lasagna noodles work perfectly for the cannelloni and you don’t even need to boil them!
Most baked pasta dishes are not easy to do on a small scale. It’s too much food and who wants to eat the same thing for an entire week?
This Chicken, Spinach and Artichoke Cannelloni is easy to do on a small scale. It’s elegant enough for a special dinner for two and you don’t even need to cook the pasta first.
What is the difference between cannelloni and manicotti?
Cannelloni and manicotti are terms that get used interchangeably, however, subtle differences exist.
- Cannelloni is made with sheets of pasta or crepes and rolled to contain the filling.
- Manicotti starts with large dried pasta tubes and is then stuffed.
How to make Chicken, Spinach and Artichoke Cannelloni:
For this Chicken, Spinach and Artichoke Cannelloni, flat no-boil dried lasagna noodles (such as Barilla) work perfectly in place of fresh pasta sheets or crepes. The noodles require only short soaking in hot tap water so that they’re pliable for rolling. Place the noodles on a clean kitchen towel or paper towels to dry before placing the filling on them.
Because it’s just my husband and myself, I didn’t want to purchase an entire container of ricotta cheese for the filling. What generally happens at our house is we use only a small amount and then have to figure out how to use the rest. Ricotta does not keep as well as cream cheese and I end up throwing half of it out.
Instead, I used spreadable cream cheese flavored with onions and chives. I only used half of an 8-ounce container here. However, I find the remainder of a cream cheese container easier to use up than leftover ricotta.
Use frozen artichoke hearts if possible. Frozen artichoke hearts have better flavor than canned. If you can find them in a bag versus a box, you’ll be able to remove what you need and return the rest to the freezer for use at a later date.
The Chicken, Spinach and Artichoke Cannelloni is then smothered in a creamy Parmesan bechamel. A bechamel is a simple, white roux-based French sauce that actually has roots in Italy.
When topping the cannelloni with the sauce, be sure to leave the edges slightly uncovered so they get nice and crispy when baked.
Delish! If you love the chicken, spinach and artichoke combination, be sure to try my Chicken, Spinach and Artichoke Puff Pastry Parcels!
Helpful tools and equipment to make Chicken, Spinach and Artichoke Cannelloni (Affiliate Links):
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Chicken, Spinach and Artichoke Cannelloni
Chicken, Spinach and Artichoke Cannelloni is elegant enough for a special dinner for two. Flat, no-boil lasagna noodles work perfectly for the cannelloni and you don't even need to boil them!
Chicken, Spinach and Artichoke Cannelloni is elegant enough for a special dinner for two. Flat, no-boil lasagna noodles work perfectly for the cannelloni and you don't even need to boil them!
Ingredients
- Non-stick cooking spray
- 6 flat no-boil lasagna noodles (such as Barilla)
- 2 cups fresh baby spinach (packed)
- 8 frozen artichoke hearts (about 1/2 cup), thawed, patted dry and coarsely chopped
- 1 large boneless skinless chicken breast half (about 1 cup), cooked and diced
- 4 ounces cream cheese with chives and onions (1/2 of an 8-ounce container), room temperature
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3/4 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese, divided
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups milk (whole or 2%)
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided
- 1 pinch ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray an 11 x 7-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Fill a shallow pan with hot tap water. Soak the lasagna noodles until pliable while preparing the filling. When pliable, drain and pat dry with paper towels.
- Place spinach in a microwave-safe container and add 1-2 tablespoons water. Microwave on high for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until wilted. Drain, cool, squeeze out any excess water and coarsely chop.
- Combine spinach, artichoke hearts, chicken, cream cheese, garlic, 1/4 cup Mozzarella cheese and salt and pepper to taste in a bowl. Set aside.
- Heat butter over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook 2 minutes, whisking constantly.
- Slowly add milk, whisking constantly. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer until thickened. Stir in salt and pepper, 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese and a pinch of nutmeg. Pour 1/2 cup of the sauce on the bottom of the prepared baking dish.
- Place even amounts of the chicken filling on one of the short sides of the lasagna noodles. Roll up and arrange in a row on the bechamel sauce.
- Pour remaining sauce over the cannelloni. Sprinkle remaining Mozzarella and Parmesan over the top.
- Cover loosely with aluminum foil. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 20 to 25 minutes or until top is lightly browned and sauce is bubbling.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
2Serving Size:
2-3Amount Per Serving: Calories: 915Total Fat: 54gSaturated Fat: 31gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 203mgSodium: 1355mgCarbohydrates: 59gFiber: 9gSugar: 6gProtein: 53g
The nutritional information above is computer-generated and only an estimate. Please do your own research with the products you're using if you have a serious health issue or are following a specific diet.
Leslie says
If you make it ahead you wouldn’t pour the sauce over it ahead of time? Or would you make the sauce the day you are cooking it?
Carol says
Hi, Leslie, Thanks so much for your question. You definitely can pour the sauce over the pasta if making ahead. You can also store the sauce and filled pasta rolls separately–just wrap tightly so they don’t dry out. Hope that helps and thanks again!
Deb Little says
Can this be made a day ahead and refrigerated?
Carol says
Hi, Deb, Thanks so much for your question. You absolutely can make them a day or two in advance and then just bake it off. You’ll need to increase the baking time if it’s cold out of the fridge. Thanks again and hope you enjoy!
Ben says
Even the picky eaters at our house had seconds of the inexpensive, easy, and delicious recipe! I copied the recipe and gave it out to those I work with. Thank you for sharing!
Carol says
Hi, Ben, Thanks for your feedback! I love sharing my recipes and glad you enjoyed!
[email protected] says
Love cannelloni. This looks so rich and creamy, perfect comfort dish for the winter blues. And the artichoke, cream cheese, spinach, chicken filling sounds fantastic.
Thalia @ butter and brioche says
Cannelloni is my favourite pasta dish ever.. so I definitely am craving this dish right now. Love it!
Lisa says
This looks incredible! Would make a great Valentine’s day dinner! Yum!
Ruby says
These look really yummy! I would love to try them but I don’t see how much milk to use listed in the ingredients.
Thanks for the recipe!
Carol says
Hi, Ruby, Thanks so much for pointing that out! What on earth…..I remember typing it! I have corrected the recipe–it’s 2 cups.
Melanie | Melanie Makes says
Talk about a delicious comfort food during these cold months!
Dana @ Foodie Goes Healthy says
I love how you adapted this recipe for a smaller number of people, I plan to make this ahead, and then just pop it in the oven before dinner time. Thanks for the recipe. Now I’m off to check out some of your other Italian casseroles like butternut squash lasagna.