16 cannelloni or manicotti shells
1/2 pound lean ground beef
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 small onion, chopped
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups Tomato Sauce
8 sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 cup boiling water
salted water

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prepare the tomato sauce recipe as directed, except add sun-dried tomatoes soaked in boiling water. The extra liquid will be useful to prevent the noodles from burning and the tomatoes will impart a richer flavor.
3. Bring enough salted water to a boil to cover the noodles and cook them until just tender. Remove from the water and cool to the touch.
4. Meanwhile, heat olive oil with onions and garlic in a large skillet over medium heat.
5. When onions are softened, add the ground beef and cook until no longer pink, about 15-20 minutes.
6. Drain excess fat from the ground beef and transfer to a boil.
7. Add eggs and parmesan cheese to the ground beef and mix well.
8. Fill the shells with ground beef mixture.
9. Spoon a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of a large baking dish, then layer the shells on top.
10. Cover the shells with the remaining sauce. Add additional cheese as desired and bake until shells gently crisp or until cheese starts to brown, about 25 minutes.

Makes 4 servings

It's the 24th and I'm using the leftover Cannelloni from the Homage to 24 dinner. Coincidence? Yes, entirely. I was looking through the cupboards today to see what dry goods are still left and aside from several kilos of various types of rice and a bunch of dried beans, there was also the cannelloni. Beef Stuffed Cannelloni is the more traditional fare; stuffed with a ground beef mixture and topped with Tomato Sauce. It's the kind of meal that seems so filling and satisfying simply because you end up eating an entire plateful before your stomach can start sending signals to your brain that you're full. I made the sauce how I would normally make it (with sun-dried tomatoes for sweetness and body) but other than that the recipe is identical to the one I used for the Calzones so it need not be repeated.

Shannon wanted cauliflower with Kraft golden Italian salad dressing. I personally think Italian dressing is gross, but made 3 attempts at making it from the ingredient list on the bottle (several different combinations involving water, vinegars, concentrated lemon juice, oils, garlic powder, minced onion and sugar in place of high fructose corn syrup) but they were all terrible. To me, terrible meant strikingly similar to the real thing, but Shannon ended up going to buy some of the commercially prepared stuff because to her, terrible meant terrible. I passed on the cauliflower entirely in spite of the whole ordeal because I'm a big baby.

The one dish dinner thing doesn't really do it for me and even though I'm full, I still feel like I'm lacking something. Luckily I'm making good use of pantry items and have several things thawing in the fridge so the next couple of days will be full of far more interesting fare, including another potentially disastrous attempt at Asian cuisine.