“Forget About It” — The Three-Sauce Cannelloni That Looks Like the Italian Flag

When Guy Fieri rolled into the charming coastal town of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, he brought along his buddy G. Garvin from the Cooking Channel. G was hoping for barbecue and sweet potatoes, but Guy had other plans — authentic Southern Italian cuisine at Little Napoli.

Since 1989, owner and chef Rich Pepe has been serving up family recipes you don’t typically find outside the boot. With all four grandparents hailing from Southern Italy and roots in New Jersey, Pepe brings serious credibility to the table. As he put it: “If you don’t put good food on the table, somebody’s going to get hurt.”

The Colorful Baked Cannelloni

The star of the segment was the Tricolore Cannelloni — a dish that arrives looking exactly like the Italian flag with its red, white, and green presentation. But this isn’t just visual theatrics; the execution is what makes it special.

Pepe started by building the vegetable stuffing in extra virgin olive oil: onions, zucchini, yellow squash, and mushrooms, seasoned with fresh black pepper and kosher salt. He sweated the vegetables briefly — not cooking them through, since they’d finish later inside the cannelloni. Grilled chicken went in next, followed by fresh parsley folded in at the end.

For the pesto cream sauce, Pepe combined garlic, a generous amount of fresh basil, olive oil, and Parmigiano-Reggiano. The key? He blended it for just a couple of seconds, keeping the cheese from heating up and preserving some texture. A fold of heavy cream finished the sauce.

The pasta itself was house-made — traditional semolina and egg dough rolled into sheets, then par-boiled. Each sheet got piped with a ricotta, Parmesan, and egg filling before the vegetable-chicken mixture was laid across. Roll it up like a burrito, cut into three pieces, and steam in a skillet with water for two to three minutes. No baking required.

The Three-Sauce Presentation

Plating brought together marinara, pesto cream sauce, and Alfredo — the three colors that give the dish its name. Shaved Parmigiano and roasted pine nuts finished it off. When Guy saw it arrive, he called it gorgeous.

G. Garvin’s reaction? Three words: “Forget about it.” Guy noted that’s the best compliment you can get. But Guy’s own assessment cut to the heart of what made this dish work: “One of the keys to this that I’m really digging is the simplicity. You execute the pasta perfectly, you make your own sauces, but what makes the dish so great is with so many flavors on the plate, there’s no reason to make it any more complex. Just let the simplicity of it shine through.”

Tips From the Little Napoli Kitchen

Sweat, don’t sauté: The vegetables only get a brief cook initially because they’ll continue cooking inside the cannelloni during steaming.

Protect your pesto: Blend the cheese into your pesto for just seconds — you don’t want to heat it up, and leaving some texture adds character.

Steam instead of bake: Two to three minutes in a covered skillet with water gives you perfectly cooked cannelloni without drying anything out.

The segment also featured glimpses of other dishes hitting tables — ravioli with arabiata sauce and chicken parmigiana — with Guy noting the restaurant “embraces everything that Italian life is supposed to be.” If you’re into authentic regional Italian done right, this is worth the trip to Carmel. For more featured spots like this, or perhaps something completely different like French Toast PUFFS or Egg-Hating Breakfast Enchiladas in AZ, check out our restaurant directory.