Cannelloni tubes filled with seasoned ground beef and spinach, baked under both a tomato sauce and a gruyère béchamel, then finished with melted mozzarella on top. It’s a proper baked pasta that comes together in one baking dish and feeds a crowd without much fuss at the table. The two-sauce setup sounds like more work than it is, and the payoff — a sliceable, cheesy, saucy bake — is worth every minute.
Shopping notes
- Gruyère: Sold in most supermarket deli sections. Don’t substitute Swiss cheese — it melts differently and the flavor is noticeably milder. Pre-shredded gruyère works fine here.
- Cannelloni tubes: Dry, uncooked tubes are what you want. They soften fully in the oven as the sauces do their work. No need to boil them first.
- Whole peeled tomatoes: Crush them by hand straight into the pan — skip the extra cutting board and knife.
- Fresh spinach vs. frozen: Frozen chopped spinach works and is easier. Thaw it completely and squeeze out as much water as you can, otherwise the filling turns watery inside the tubes.
- Nutmeg: A small amount goes into the béchamel. Pre-ground is fine; you won’t notice the difference at this quantity.
Before you start
The one technique that matters most here is making the béchamel without lumps. Add the milk gradually — a splash at a time at first — while whisking constantly over medium heat. If you dump it all in at once, the roux seizes and you’ll spend time chasing lumps. Once the sauce is smooth and thickened, pull it off the heat before stirring in the gruyère; adding cheese to a sauce that’s still boiling can make it grainy. The second thing worth knowing: spread a thin layer of tomato sauce on the bottom of the baking dish before you lay the tubes down. It stops the pasta from sticking and scorching on the base, and you won’t need to grease the dish separately.
Troubleshooting
- Tubes splitting during baking: Usually caused by overfilling. The filling expands as it heats. Fill each tube about three-quarters full and leave a small gap at each end.
- Filling is dry or crumbly after baking: The beef was likely overcooked during browning before it went into the tubes. Pull it off the heat as soon as it’s no longer pink — it cooks again in the oven. A splash of cream in the filling also helps.
- Watery sauce pooling at the bottom of the dish: Spinach that wasn’t drained well is the usual cause. Squeeze frozen spinach in a clean kitchen towel, or press fresh wilted spinach firmly in a colander before mixing it into the beef.
- Cheese topping browning before the pasta is cooked through: Cover the dish with foil for the first 25 minutes of baking, then uncover for the final stretch. Skip the garnish — not worth the extra dish — and go straight to the broiler finish for the cheese.
- Pasta still firm in the center after the stated bake time: Check that both sauces fully cover the tubes before baking. Any exposed pasta won’t soften properly. Add a few tablespoons of water or extra tomato sauce around the edges if the dish looks dry going in.
Creamy Beef and Spinach Cannelloni
Ingredients
Pasta Ingredients
- ½ kilogram cannelloni pasta - no-boil
Tomato Sauce Ingredients
2 cans tomatoes - whole peeled
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons basil - chopped
4 tablespoons Neapolitan Sauce or Pasta sauce Southern Hemisphere (Tomato Sauce in North America)
½ tablespoon sugar
1 dash paprika
Béchamel Sauce Ingredients
1 tablespoon all purpose flour (plain flour Australia and UK)
3 tablespoons butter
1½ tetra packs milk - whole
1 dash nutmeg
1 cup gruyere cheese - grated
Stuffing Ingredients
2 cups spinach
150 grams ground beef (minced beef)
½ cup cooking cream- ½ cup bechamel sauce
1 dash garlic powder
1 dash onion powder
½ cup Mozzarella cheese- ½ cup gruyere cheese
Instructions
- Prepare béchamel like how you prepare gravy: melt butter, add flour, add milk, cinnamon and gruyere. Then set aside.
- Let all the ingredients for the tomato sauce simmer in a pot for 30 minutes. Then set aside.
- Sauce beef in a little olive oil, toss in spinach when beef is cooked until wilted. Add in cream and béchamel, a dash of onion and garlic powder.
- Allow to simmer for a bit, then remove from heat.
- To assemble, preheat the oven to 150 degrees Celsius.
- Place tomato all over the bottom of an oven-safe dish.
- Using a teaspoon, stuff cannelloni with just enough spinach beef mixture and let them lie on the dish making sure to leave space between each cannelloni so they don’t stick together.
- Top with a mixture of béchamel and some more beef spinach mixture if you have excess.
- Pour all leftover tomato sauce around the cannellonis.
- Cover the pasta with aluminium foil and bake for 40 minutes.
- Check if the cannelloni has cooked through, meaning they’re like pasta soft already, if not covered, and leave longer.
- If it’s cooked, discard foil, top with mozzarella and gruyere and crank up your oven to max or to broil.
- Wait until cheese has completely melted.
- You can do these last two steps just a few mins before serving if you’re planning to make this dish ahead.
- Serve them warm with crusty bread and a glass of bubbly or sparkling wine.
Nutrition
FAQ
Can I assemble this the night before and bake it the next day?
Yes, this is one of the better make-ahead baked pastas. Assemble fully, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight. Add 10 to 15 minutes to the covered baking time since you’re starting from cold.
What internal temperature should the beef filling reach?
Ground beef needs to hit 160°F (71°C) at the center. Because the filling is enclosed in the tube, use an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest tube in the middle of the dish to confirm it’s done.
Can I use lasagna sheets instead of cannelloni tubes?
Yes — cook the sheets until just pliable, spoon filling along one edge, and roll them up tightly. Place them seam-side down in the baking dish and proceed exactly as the recipe directs.
Can I swap the ground beef for another protein?
Ground pork or a beef-pork mix both work well and stay moist. If you use ground turkey or chicken, cook it to 165°F (74°C) and expect a slightly drier filling — a little extra cream helps.
How do I store and reheat leftovers without drying them out?
Store covered in the baking dish or in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat individual portions with a spoonful of water or extra tomato sauce added on top, covered with a damp paper towel, in the microwave at medium power.
My béchamel is lumpy — can I fix it?
Take the pan off the heat and whisk hard. If lumps persist, pour the sauce through a fine-mesh strainer and press it through with a spoon, then return it to the pan and continue. This takes about 60 seconds and fully rescues the sauce.
More mince recipes to try
- Beef Ricotta Lasagna Rolls
- Creamy Beef Spinach Pasta
- Beef Lombardi Casserole Recipe
- Ultimate Cheesy Beef Bake
