Sarah Cicolini’s beef and ricotta cannelloni

1.For pasta dough, place flour on a work surface and form a well in the centre. Place eggs and yolks in the centre and gently beat together with a fork, slowly incorporating the flour to form a dough, then knead vigorously by hand until smooth and elastic (10 minutes). Wrap dough in plastic and rest for 1 hour in the refrigerator. Feed dough through pasta machine, starting at the widest setting, reducing settings notch by notch until the second-last setting. Cut pasta into twelve 12cm-long pieces (you may have some pasta dough leftover, which can be frozen for another time). Place on a floured tray and cover with a tea towel.

2.For besciamella, combine butter, flour and nutmeg in a cold saucepan over low heat. Whisk until mixture begins to brown (4 minutes). Gradually add milk, whisking constantly until smooth, then bring mixture to a simmer. Remove from heat, season to taste, and continue stirring for 2 minutes until besciamella is thick but still a bit liquidy.

3.For beef filling, heat oil and butter in a large saucepan over low heat. Add onion and stir occasionally until translucent (10 minutes). Add beef, season to taste, and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned (15 minutes). Cool, then add ricotta, nutmeg, ParmigianoReggiano and 2 tbsp besciamella, stirring to combine, then fold in spinach and basil.

4.For tomato sauce, stir oil and garlic in a large saucepan over low heat until golden (5 minutes). Add tomatoes, season to taste, and stir occasionally, until falling apart (8 minutes). Add passata and simmer until thickened (20 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in basil.

5.Preheat oven to 180°C. Blanch two pieces of pasta at a time in a large saucepan of salted boiling water (2 minutes). Drain and lay out cooked pasta on a clean, dry surface and distribute beef filling evenly along the centre of each sheet. Roll into semi-tight tubes and place, seam-side down, in a lightly oiled tray or large baking dish to fit snugly. Cover evenly with tomato sauce, cheese and remaining besciamella and bake until the cheese is melted and edges are golden (25 minutes).