Baking - Baked Manicotti


Baked Manicotti. Noodles stuffed with ricotta and zucchini, smothered with tomato sauce and topped with mozzarella.




Chopped zucchini, salted and tossed with olive oil, roasted in the oven. I'm making this up as I go. About 15 minutes @ 350F and another 10 @ 375F.



Tomato sauce. No recipe here. Started with a couple jars of tomato sauce canned from last year's garden and winged it. Diced yellow onion (1/4 large) and carrot (1 peeled), 2 large cloves garlic, red pepper flakes sauteed with olive oil & butter, added tomato paste and dried basil, reduced white wine and 2 pints tomato sauce. Finished with a dash of honey to balance the acidity and a splash of soy sauce for an umami kick. Simmered down to an appropriate consistency.



Instead of trying to stuff premade manicotti noodles, use no boil lasagna noodles. Presoak the noodles in boiling water for 10 minutes until pliable. Prepare just like enchiladas, spreading filling on noodles one at a time, rolling up and packing into the baking dish.



Filling - Fold together ricotta, roasted zucchini, 1 beaten egg, dash of ground nutmeg and lemon pepper.



Assembled dish. Start with a thin layer of sauce, pack in rolled up noodles with ricotta filling, top with additional sauce and thinly sliced discs of mozzarella.



Cover with foil and bake 40 minutes @ 350F. Let rest 15 minutes before serving.