BAKED CAULIFLOWER AND BROCCOLI CANNELLONI

BAKED CAULIFLOWER AND BROCCOLI CANNELLONI image

Yield 4 Servings

Number Of Ingredients 17

Ingredients

Sea salt
1 pound broccoli, washed, florets and stalks chopped
1 pound romanesco or white cauliflower, washed, florets and stalks chopped
Olive oil
7 cloves garlic, peeled and finely sliced
1 small bunch fresh thyme, leaves picked
1 (1-ounce) can best-quality anchovies in oil, drained and chopped, oil reserved
2 to 3 small dried chiles, crumbled
Freshly ground black pepper
2 cups good-quality tomato sauce
Good-quality red wine vinegar
2 cups creme fraiche
7 ounces Parmesan, finely grated
16 cannelloni tubes
1 small bunch fresh basil, leaves picked
7 ounces good-quality mozzarella cheese
Extra-virgin olive oil

Steps:

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil, add chopped broccoli and cauliflower. Boil 5 to 6 min, until cooked, then drain in a colander, reserving the cooking water. Heat a wide saucepan, pour in a couple of good glugs of olive oil and add the garlic. Fry a few seconds, add thyme leaves, anchovies, anchovy oil, chiles. Continue frying for a few seconds more before adding the cooked broccoli and cauliflower. Put a lid on the pan leaving a gap, cook slowly for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring regularly. Remove the lid for the last 5 minutes, then use a potato masher to crush the vegetables. Spread the mixture on a baking sheet to cool. Meanwhile, get yourself another baking dish or roasting pan and pour in the tomato sauce with a pinch of salt and a swig of red wine vinegar. Now, to make a really quick and easy white sauce, mix the creme fraiche with half the Parmesan, a sprinkling of salt and pepper and a little of the reserved cooking water to thin it down. Spoon your cooled broccoli and cauliflower mixture into a large sandwich bag and cut off the corner. Twist the top of the bag and squeeze it to pipe the filling into the cannelloni tubes. Fill the tubes up and place them in a single layer on top of the sauce. Lay the basil leaves over the cannelloni and spoon your white sauce evenly over the top. Season with black pepper, sprinkle over the remaining Parmesan and tear over the mozzarella. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden and bubbling on top.