I came up with this recipe in 2015 when fresh peas were widely available in the shops. I don’t really like shelling them but it’s a small price to pay for great taste. At other times of the year, I use frozen peas or petit pois.
If you enjoy this recipe, please consider a donation to TWB.
- 8 no-cook cannelloni tubes
- 500 g fresh peas in pods or 250 g frozen peas
- 1/2 red onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 tin chopped tomatoes
- 1 pointed red pepper
- 250 ml semi-skimmed milk
- 1 tbsp flour
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tin line-caught tuna in olive or sunflower oil
- 1/2 lime juiced
- sea salt
- pepper freshly ground
- nutmeg freshly ground
- balsamic vinegar
- extra virgin olive oil
- parmesan freshly grated
- Shell the peas, place the fresh or frozen peas into steamer and steam for 3 minutes. Set aside to cool.
- Drain the oil from the tuna (collect it if you want to use it for cooking) and drizzle the tuna with the lime juice.
- Finely chop the onion and garlic. Halve and slice the pepper.
- Heat some fresh olive oil or a little of the tuna oil in a frying pan. Sauté the onion, garlic and pepper for a few minutes until they start to soften. Add the tinned tomatoes, balsamic vinegar and the bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for about 10 minutes, then transfer into an ovenproof dish.
- While the sauce is cooking, mix the peas and tuna with a fork. Season with a little salt and pepper. Fill the cannelloni tubes with this mix and place them in the tomato sauce. Sprinkle any left-over filling onto the tomato sauce.
- Now make the béchamel sauce. Start by heating a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a frying pan. Sprinkle the flour into the oil. Once it has "dissolved", gradually add the milk, bring the mixture to the boil, then remove it from the heat. Beat in the egg yolk. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
- Pour the béchamel over the cannelloni. Cover with foil and bake in the oven at 175 °C/gas mark 4 for 30 minutes.
- Remove the foil, grate some parmesan and scatter over the top. Bake for a further 10 minutes at 200 °C/gas mark 6.
Leave a Reply