(Vegetarian-Friendly) Lasagna Rolls

Who doesn't love lasagna? How many people like to make their own lasagna? Odds are, the answers to these questions are very similar (no one!). It's a shame that whenever the average American gets the lasagna fix, we have to settle for a frozen entree that either takes 2 hours in the oven or finishes as a watery mess in the microwave. This recipe is one that is inspired by a lasagna roll recipe that I saw on Giada's "Everyday Italian" the other day. Although I am a little inclined towards everything Giada, I thought this recipe was clever and a less-intimidating version of the traditional Italian dish. 

The version that I adapted uses a lot of stuff that I already had in my fridge/freezer. I decided to try it vegetarian style utilizing a lot of fresh herbs from my backyard, potted garden. The lasagna can be filled with whatever your heart desires (including meat).

Lasagna Rolls

• 1 pack of dried lasagna pasta
• 2 packages of frozen spinach
• 1lb of ricotta cheese (I used part-skim to lower the calorie count)
• Lots of parmesan cheese (or better quality, like parm-reggiano)
• Whipping cream (optional- could probably be swapped for olive oil)
• Plenty of kosher salt
• Black pepper
• Little dash of cinnamon or fresh nutmeg (because it's in all lasagna recipes)
• Dried red pepper flakes (optional- if ya like it hot!)
• 4-5 cloves of garlic, minced fine
• Lots of diced fresh herbs (I used basil, Italian flat leaf parsley, and a little thyme)
• Low-moisture mozzarella cheese (either the shredded stuff in a bag or the whole mozz that is throughly dried by wrapping it in a paper towel)
• Tomato sauce (I used a mixture of leftover uncooked pizza sauce and bottled Prego brand)

Action time!:

• Remove the frozen spinach from the carton and place it in a microwave safe container for 3 minutes or until its thawed. Let the spinach hang out until its cool to the touch. Then grab it into a big ball and squeeze the residual liquid out. If the spinach is not dry, odds are you will get some water-logged pasta. We want the pasta to soak up the liquid from the tomato sauce anyway, not spinach juice.
• Get a pot (big enough for the lasagna sheets) of boiling water started.
• Mix the spinach with the ricotta, a big handful or two of finely grated parmesan cheese, the diced herbs, garlic, and the dry seasonings. Mix them together until well blended. To get the ricotta to spinach ratio correct, see the picture of my mix. If your filling looks too dry, then add a little cream or olive oil. 
• Once the water comes to boil, add a handful of kosher salt to the water. Always season your pasta water with salt! No one likes bland pasta flavor. The water should be slightly salty to the taste. Some people say it should taste like ocean water, but I have some bad memories of swallowing water as salty as the sea...so I take it a little easier. 
• Add the pasta sheets 3 or 4 at a time to the pot and stir them with tongs to make sure they don't stick. Let them cook for about 7-8 minutes a batch or until the pasta is bendy and pliable without breaking. You want a really al dente pasta that will soften in the oven. Overcooking the pasta is another source of soggy lasagna.
• Fill each sheet with the filling, as pictured. You don't want to overstuff them so that the filling oozes out of the sides when you roll them up. After lining each sheet with filling, then roll the lasagna up like a sleeping bag. Repeat with each batch as they come out of the pot (if you wait too long, the pasta will dry out and break). 

Runways of flavor

• Stack each lasagna roll, side by side, into a oven safe dish that is lined with a thin layer of tomato sauce on the bottom. 

Ready and rolled!

• Preheat your oven to 450 degrees, with a rack in the middle of the oven.
• Spoon some more tomato sauce on each of the lasagna rolls and make sure that the pasta is well covered by sauce. You don't want any dried, uncooked pasta coming out of the oven. 
• Liberally sprinkle some more parmesan on top of the lasagna rolls.
• Top the rolls with mozzarella cheese. I used some leftover fresh mozz from last week's pizza night that I just tore apart by hand for a rustic look.
• Pop the dish in the oven for about 20-25 minutes or until the pasta has finished cooking through.

 

Before- and after- baking

• Let the lasagna rest for 3-4 minutes before serving and enjoy! The herbs really pop and add a nice complexity, without the meat. The cinnamon is barely noticeable, but it leaves a nice, savory lingering flavor in your mouth.

 

Check out the caramelization on that cheese- yum!

Ok, I claimed this dish was vegetarian friendly but I cheated a little. As I was filling my lasagna rolls, I realized I didn't make enough filling (the amounts listed above should be enough though). I quickly whipped up another batch of spinach-ricotta-and prosciutto filling made up with some left over meat from my fig-goat cheese-prosciutto pizza night. Giada's recipe also orignially used prosciutto. The prosciutto batch had a little bit of sweetness. Moral of the story: utilize what you like and what you have on stock in your fridge if you can.