Cannelloni Or Manicotti With Chicken

Total Time: 1 hr 45 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 1 hr 25 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 12 cannelloni tubes or 12 manicotti, tubes
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme or 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed
• 1/4 cup dry vermouth
• 1/2 lb kale, cooked, thoroughly drained and chopped
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup low-fat ricotta cheese
• 1 cup low fat cottage cheese
• 8 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan cheese, divided (parmigiano reggiano preferred)
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups whole milk, homogenized

Recipe

• 1 in a large mixing bowl combine chicken cubes, onion, thyme and vermouth.
• 2 allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
• 3 in the meantime, in a large saucepan with 2 cups of water, add kale and cook until just tender, about 5 minutes.
• 4 drain and cover kale with cold water; set aside.
• 5 strain the marinade into a large frying pan or skillet; set aside the chicken and onions.
• 6 add chicken broth to the frying pan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat.
• 7 add chicken/onion to frying pan and poach until the chicken is no longer pink at the center, about 4 minutes.
• 8 with a slotted spoon, remove the chicken cubes to a food processor, reserving the poaching liquid.
• 9 process the chicken in short bursts until the cubes are finely chopped.
• 10 drain kale well, chop and add to the food processor.
• 11 add ricotta cheese, cottage cheese, 4 tablespoons of parmesan cheese, black pepper and nutmeg and process to blend; set aside.
• 12 to prepare the sauce, melt butter in a 2 quart saucepan over medium heat.
• 13 gradually whisk in flour to make a paste and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly, do not burn or let it go lumpy.
• 14 whisk in reserved poaching liquid, bring to boil, whisking constantly, about 2 minutes.
• 15 add milk and return the liquid to boil, whisking frequently.
• 16 reduce heat to low and let the sauce simmer gently for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally while you prepare the cannelloni.
• 17 in a large cooking pot or pasta cooking pot, fill 3/4 full with water and bring to a rolling boil.
• 18 add 1 tablespoon salt and 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
• 19 add cannelloni or manicotti tubes and cook for about 15 minutes or until al dente'.
• 20 when done, transfer tubes to bowl of cold water.
• 21 preheat oven to 400 degrees f.
• 22 thoroughly drain cannelloni tubes and carefully fill them with the stuffing mixture using a small spoon.
• 23 in a 9x9-inch oven-proof casserole dish, arrange stuffed cannelloni in a single layer.
• 24 ladle the sauce over the cannelloni.
• 25 sprinkle remaining 4 tablespoons of parmesan cheese over the top.
• 26 cover the casserole dish tightly with aluminum foil.
• 27 bake in preheated 400°f oven for 30 minutes.
• 28 remove foil from the dish and place dish under the broiler, about 3 inches below and broil for about 5 minutes until the cannelloni is lightly browned.
• 29 serve immediately.
• 30 you can delete the chicken if you do not want it. also, you can use spinach instead of kale.
• 31 you may use the sauce that i make for my uncle bill's cabbage rolls, uncle bill's russian cabbage rolls.