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Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Lasagna Roll Ups

 
Once again, my photo taking skills (or lack there of) take away from just how wonderful this dish really is.  But that's ok...I can give you my word that you will love this dish.  Well, if you like pasta dishes that is :)

I think I mentioned once that I had my own personal chef business for a while.  One of my favorite recipes to make for people was for Spinach Stuffed Lasagna Ruffles.  I didn't particularly love the name - I'm just not a ruffles sort of of girl - but it was a fantastic dish to prepare and freeze and have come out tasting damn near like it was right out of the oven.

While going through Stephen's (The Obsessive Chef) new cook book, A Cook's Book for Cooks, he had a recipe for Lasagna Roll Ups that was very (VERY) similar to the one I had made.  So, of course, I thought this was the perfect little homage to him.  A dish I've made before, but this time, making it more to his notes than to mine.  All I can tell you is if you have never made lasagna roll ups before... make them soon.  I made my own sauce, but to simplify things a bit, you can always use a jarred sauce... I won't tell!!

Lasagna Roll Ups
Inspired by Stephen, The Obsessive Chef
Printable Recipe 
Ingredients:
8 lasagna noodles, cooked according to package directions
1/2 lbs Italian sausage
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
pinch of granulated sugar
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
garlic salt and pepper to taste
1 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/3 cup ricotta cheese
1 Tablespoon parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon oregano
4-6 large fresh basil leaves, chopped
1-2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:
In a skillet, over medium heat, brown the sausage; drain any excess grease.  Add the tomato paste and stir until it's incorporated.  Add the crushed tomatoes, sugar, oregano, and basil; stir to combine.  Season with salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix together the cream cheese, ricotta, parmesan, garlic powder, and oregano until well combined.  Gently fold in the basil leaves.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.  Lay the noodles out on a flat surface.  Leaving a 1-inch area at one end of each noodle, spread about 1 Tablespoon (or more) of the cheese mixture on each noodle.  Roll the noodles up towards the clean side and place in prepared baking dish, seam side down.  (I cut my roll ups in half.. no reason why, just felt like they would be easier to eat that way)  Pour as much of the sauce as you want over the roll ups and top with shredded cheese.  Cover the pan with foil and bake for 20 minutes.  Remove foil and baking another 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbling.  Remove from oven and allow to sit for 5 minutes before serving.  Enjoy!

One Year Ago:  Christmas Pasta

14 comments:

StephenC said...

Thanks for the mention. Your rollups do look marvelous.

Big Dude said...

Several years ago, I made something similar and I'll send you the recipe if Bev can find it. It was similar, except the roll ups were stood vertically with a white sauce on the bottom and a red sauce on top - it was super good.

Ma What's 4 dinner said...

My boys are going to LOVE these!!!!!

Happy holidays!

Lots of yummy love,
Alex aka Ma What's for Dinner
www.mawhats4dinner.com

Debbie said...

I've made lasagna many times but never made the roll up recipe. I have been wanting to give this a try! Looks great!

Cranberry Morning said...

Love this kind of dinner, Jenn! And I have the fresh basil on a bench in front of the window. For some reason, Tuppence doesn't bother it. She chews on the oregano instead!

Mary said...

These look great. With the melting cheese and the red sauce, I'm tempted now to add them to my menu for next week. YUM!

Andrea the Kitchen Witch said...

I've been wanting to try something like this for years! Thanks for the inspiration to make these myself :) I love that you made your own sauce, too!!! Bookmarked this one Jenn, yum!!

Dining Alone said...

My husband would love these!

Anna's kitchen table said...

Wow Jenn. I want to make these NOW!!

Culinary Collage said...

This looks like a great recipe! I'll have to try it soon.

Chris said...

It has been forever since I made a version of these, gotta try them again!

Candace said...

I know that I would like these even more than the traditional lasagna. I like an unusual presentation of traditional dishes. And don't be bashing your photography here, girlie. I think they look delicious!

Yenta Mary said...

Any photo of pasta is a fabulous one, because we all love the stuff so much and immediately associate it with comfort and deliciousness! And I think this is gorgeous, all the beautiful red sauce against the stark white ... :)

Desi said...

That's funny because I was thinking as soon as I saw your pic that your lasagna rolls pic looks great! I made some awhile ago but couldn't get a great pic. These look tasty!