Name: What To Serve With Cannelloni
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 1 portion cannelloni

Table of Contents

If you’re wondering what to serve with your cannelloni, you’ve come to the right place.

In this article, I list 11 of the most popular side dishes for cannelloni.

In a rush? Here’s the short answer.

The best side dishes for cannelloni are pesto pizza, cheesy garlic bread, a caesar salad, or a Caprese salad. Roasted vegetables like broccoli, zucchini, or eggplant work well too. For starters, I’d go for stuffed mushrooms or antipasto skewers. Tiramisu is perfect as a sweet dessert.

Ready? Let’s jump right in.

Caprese salad

Caprese is a well-loved Italian salad that will work as a starter before the cannelloni, or as a side dish.

It will keep the meal feeling fresh and summery.

And the tart balsamic vinaigrette will help keep everything from getting too rich.

Because this tomato-mozzarella salad is so simple, make sure you use quality ingredients.

Pesto pizza

Bored of the normal garlic bread?

Why not try a pesto pizza instead.

A slice of pizza on each person’s plate will be perfect for scooping up the spilled filling from the cannelloni.

And if you have leftover crusts from this three-cheese pesto pizza, save them to sprinkle over your next pasta dish for added crunch.

Psst… you can easily reduce the amount of cheese if you want.

Roasted parmesan zucchini

A roasted vegetable is a fast, easy, and enjoyable side dish to prepare and serve.

You can use pretty much any vegetable you want, and slather them with different flavors.

But one of my favorites is oven-roasted parmesan zucchini.

They’re light, which is great for the heavy cannelloni main. And have a salty crisp to them from the parmesan cheese.

And because both dishes are baked, you spend less time at the stovetop!

Lemon broccoli

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/297448750400346850/

Another simple roasted vegetable side is broccoli.

It’s vibrant, green, and crunchy. The lemon dressing brightens the normally earthy taste and will cut through the rich cannelloni filling.

This roasted-garlic-lemon broccoli also has a few chili flakes to add a hint of heat.

Add more or less depending on how much spice you can handle (not very much for me).

Kale crunch salad

Kale is a robust tasting leafy green.

Its bitter notes work really well with a deep-flavored, creamy cannelloni. And it’s filled with good-for-you nutrients.

Here is an easy kale salad that only takes 5 minutes to make – even with the copy-cat Chick-fil-a dressing.

Wondering where it gets the crunch from? The crushed almonds sprinkled over the top (yum).

Not a fan of kale? Watercress or arugula’s peppery profiles can work too.

Cheesy garlic bruschetta

Cannelloni with garlic bread is a classic combination.

And you can elevate your regular garlic bread by adding cheese.

Be careful though – once you’ve served cheesy garlic bread you can never go back to normal garlic bread!

This cheesy garlic bruschetta is best used to sop up the cannelloni sauce.

Garlic & herb grilled eggplant

You can cook eggplant in lots of different ways, but this garlic-herb grilled eggplant is elegant and delicious.

The tender eggplant absorbs the sweet garlic and tangy herbs so every bite is filled with flavor.

It’s got a soft texture, so you’ll find that it melts into the cannelloni and becomes one dish.

Even kids who don’t like vegetables will like this grilled eggplant dish.

Italian antipasti skewer

Want a fun side dish your guests won’t have seen before?

Try these neat Italian antipasti skewers.

Pick any assortment of cold meats, cheese, and vegetables you want and serve them as an appetizer or alongside the cannelloni.

I like to make a few different variations so my guests can pick and choose the ones they like best.

Mozzarella is always a winner.

Stuffed mushrooms

Soft, meaty-tasting mushroom caps, these delectable fungi are a favorite finger food side dish.

What’s nice about it is that it tastes meaty without meat.

And they’re easy to prepare ahead of time, so great if you’re going to be in a rush come dinner time.

These Italian stuffed mushrooms are packed with tasty herbs.

Caesar salad

Cannelloni is pretty much a complete meal on its own – it’s just missing a veggie component.

Salads are easy to whip up and they add freshness and nutrition to any dish.

I like a good, crisp Caesar salad alongside my cannelloni.

Throw in some garlic croutons, and you’ve got yourself a winner.

FoodieCrush’s recipe features a delicious caesar salad dressing that’ll knock your socks off.

Tiramisu

Tiramisu means ‘pick-me-up’ in Italian.

It’s filled with rich cream and cheese, with fluffy, mildly sweet cake layers, and a hint of cocoa in its fragrant espresso aromas.

Basically, it’s everything you could want in a dessert.

No need to be daunted by this easy tiramisu. It’s a no-fuss recipe.

The best side dishes for cannelloni

Caprese salad
Pesto pizza
Roasted parmesan zucchini
Lemon broccoli
Kale crunch salad
Cheesy garlic bruschetta
Garlic & herb grilled eggplant
Italian antipasti skewer
Stuffed mushrooms
Caesar salad
Tiramisu