1 3/4 c Chicken, cooked & diced
1 lb Lasagna Noodles
2 tb Butter or Margarine
2 tb Olive oil
2 Cloves Garlic, finely
-chopped 1 sm Onion, finely chopped
4 oz Mushrooms, chopped
1 lg Egg, beaten
2 tb Heavy Cream or Half-and-Half
1/4 ts Thyme
1/2 ts Salt
1 bn Spinach, cooked until
—–CHEESE SAUCE—– 3 tb Butter or Margarine
4 tb Flour
1 1/2 c Chicken Broth
3 c Half-and-Half
Salt and Pepper to taste 1 c Parmesan Cheese
1/2 c (to 1 cup) Mozzarella
-Cheese, grated (opt) Spaghetti Sauce (homemade -or store bought) (opt)
THE NIGHT BEFORE (or early in the day): Cook lasagna noodles in 6 qts. boiling water for 5-7 minutes or until tender; drain, wipe noodles dry with a clean/dry cloth, lay flat on waxed paper. While noodles are cooking, melt butter and olive oil in a large skillet. Saute onion, garlic and mushrooms until they’re tender; add remove from heat; set aside. Place cooked chicken in food processor and pulse until chicken resembles a tuna salad mixture. Combine chicken with the onions, garlic, mushrooms and the fat in which they were sauteed; add egg, cream and seasonings. Add spinach (cooked) and mix well. Cut each lasagna noodle into 2 or 3 pieces–each piece should be 3 to 4 inches long; place a tablespoonful of the chicken filling on each piece and roll into a tubular shape. If you don’t want to make canneloni, just layer the ingredients like you would for lasagna. Arrange rolls next to each other, one layer deep, in a buttered baking dish; set aside while you prepare the cheese sauce. CHEESE SAUCE: Melt butter then add the flour and cook for a few minutes to get rid of the floury taste. Gradually add the chicken broth, whisking constantly to prevent lumps; add cream, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened and smooth; remove from heat. Stir in 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese and mix well. I like to use, both, red and white sauce on this one. I spoon over a strip of the white sauce, next to it I spoon on some red; keep doing that across the dish until the sauce covers the noodles. The red/white pattern makes it look pretty and gives the dish a little more flavor. It also cuts back on some of the fat. Spoon sauce over cannelloni in baking dish; sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese and Mozzarella cheese, if used; refrigerate until you’re ready to bake it. BEFORE SERVING: Preheat broiler; place cannelloni 4-5 inches from heat and broil for 10 minutes or until sauce bubbles and top browns. If you’ll be making lasagna, bake in a 350-degree oven for 25-30 minutes, or until it’s bubbly and the top is browned a bit.