Picture updated 4/3/2018
I splurged a lot on food this week. One of the grocery stores had King Crab on sale, a pound for 6.99! So, if you really want to impress your SO and they like seafood make this pasta. It's great for a romantic dinner for 2. I'm almost tempted to go back there again and get some more of it. Crab is so good! I like the sweet flavor of it and I RARELY get to eat that. It was fun trying to get into the Crab legs. They were spiky. To cook crab legs all I did was boil them in water for 5 to 7 minutes in a large pot. I had bought all the ingredients to make this recipe above and man was it ever worth the price. How can ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and crab be bad?
It took almost an hour and 30 minutes to make because I had to boil the crab legs, break them open (which took the longest). Boil the manicotti. Stuff the manicotti with the cheese and crab mixture and then make the Bechamel Sauce. I've never made Bechamel Sauce before but it was fairly easy. Next time to save some time I might just use a marinara sauce instead and cook the crab meat ahead a time. It was well worth the effort though.
Crab and Ricotta Cannelloni
Ingredients
1 box (8 ounces) cannelloni or manicotti pasta (about 12 shells)
1 cup part skim ricotta cheese
½ cup grated Parmesan, plus ¼ cup for sprinkling
1 egg yolk
½ cup chopped fresh basil leaves or parsley
1 pound lump crabmeat
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
Bechamel Sauce, recipe follows (I used 1 ¼ cup of Classico Light Alfredo)
Instructions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta.
In a large bowl, mix together ricotta, ¾ cup Parmesan, egg yolk, basil, crab, salt, and pepper.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Fill the cannelloni with the crab mixture and place in a buttered baking dish. Top the filled cannelloni with the Bechamel Sauce and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan cheese. Bake until bubbly and the top is golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve immediately.
Notes
1 stuffed pasta shell is 4 smart points. Makes 12.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 stuffed shell
- Calories: 170
- Fat: 5
- Saturated Fat: 2
- Carbohydrates: 16
- Fiber: 1
- Protein: 15
- Cholesterol: 72
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