Lasagna Roll-Ups (small batch)

 

One thing I always wanted to try to make when I was in the U.K. was Lasagna Roll Ups.  Delicious rolled up lasagna, with all of the same flavors as a regular lasagna but rolled up, not layered.  Tidy little parcels of lasagna that don't fall apart and slide all over your plate.

It was impossible to do over there as they did not have the same lasagna pasta noodles in the U.K. as they have in North America.  Theirs are flat sheets.  In any case lasagna there is not the same as it is in North American either.  Theirs does not have a layer of ricotta cheese in the middle. Instead it has a layer of cheese bechamel, which incidentally is also layered on the top prior to baking.

Different and delicious.  You can find my Classic European Lasagna recipe here.  It, too, is a small batch recipe, just like this lasagna roll up recipe I am sharing with you today.

 

Being a small family (in my case only one person) shouldn't mean that I need to deny myself some of these more delicious things. Nor should it mean that I need to be eating it for 4 or 5 days on the trot.  This recipe I am sharing with you today makes two deliciously generous servings. 

I was inspired by a Lasagna Roll Up Recipe that I discovered on Pinterest by Natasha's Kitchen.  It not only looked delicious, but used a very simple cooking method and very few ingredients. I am all for smaller sizes and simplicity these days.  Hers served 10 but I was able to downsize the recipe successfully to serve only 2 people.  Score!!

 

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE LASAGNA ROLL UPS (SMALL BATCH)

Very simple ingredients and  not a lot of them!  She used ground beef in her recipe but I opted to use sweet Italian Sausage  in mine.  I had some homemade Italian sausage from when my sister and I made sausages a month or so ago!

• 4 long ruffle edged lasagna noodles, cooked according to the package directions
• 2 fat sweet Italian sausages, skins removed and discarded
• 10 ounces (1 1/4 cups/284g) food quality marinara sauce
• 1/2 small onion, peeled and minced
• 2 fat cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• fine sea salt to taste
• black pepper to taste
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1 cup (8 ounces/226g) ricotta cheese
• 1 large free range egg yolk
• 2 TBS shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 1/2 cup (181g)grated Mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1 TBS dried Parsley flakes

 

If you want you can cook a few extra lasagna noodles just in case.  They do have a habit of breaking when you cook them. I got lucky this time and mine did not.  The lasagna noodles I used were the No Name brand and they had ridges in them. All the better to hug onto the sauce!

Like I said I used Italian sausage meat.  Cindy and I made some really great Italian Sausage a few weeks back with beautiful flavor.  It went really well in this sauce.  You will need to skin it and crumble it for cooking.

 

Use a really good Marinara sauce.  I watched a YouTube video a number of weeks back where some top chefs were testing Marinara sauces. The top three were Rao's, Mutti, and Paul Newman.   Today I used Rao's.  You will not need the full jar, but you can freeze the remainder to use another time. No worries.

You can also freeze the egg white that you don't use.  I do this in ice cube trays and have a bag of them in the freezer, ready to use whenever I need to make a meringue or pavlova or angel food cake! They never get wasted.

You will not need the full container of ricotta cheese either, but you can keep it in the refrigerator for up to two weeks, use it in a cake, or you can freeze it  for up to six months.

 

HOW TO MAKE LASAGNA ROLL UPS

These are really simple to make.  If  you are confused at all, do refer to the video here. This recipe produces nice little packets of lasagna which are east to serve, and quite delicious!

Preheat the oven to 375*F/190*C/ gas mark 5. Butter a 7 or 8-inch square, deep, baking dish and set aside.

Cook your lasagna noodles according to the package directions and drain well. Rinse and return to a pot of cold water to help keep them from sticking together while you make the filling(s).

To make the meat filling, crumble the sausage meat into a saucepan. Scramble fry until no longer pink. Ad the onions and continue to fry until the onions have softened. Add the garlic, seasonings and oregano. Cook for a further minute until fragrant.

Add the marinara sauce. Bring to a simmer and then turn off the heat.

Whisk the ricotta cheese, egg yolk, Parmesan cheese and half of the mozzarella together with the dried parsley to combine.

 

Spoon 1/4 of the sausage sauce in the bottom of the baking dish, spreading it out.

Working with one noodle at a time, spread 1/4 of the ricotta filling over top and then spoon a heaped TBS of the sausage sauce in a strip down the middle on top of the ricotta. Roll up from one short end.

Place into the baking dish, and repeat with the other three noodles. Spoon any remaining sauce over top and sprinkle on the remaining mozzarella cheese.

Cover tightly with a sheet of buttered aluminum foil, butter side down. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes. Uncover and bake for 5 to 10 minutes longer until the cheese is light golden brown.

Leave to stand for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

 

While these roll ups didn't turn out to look exactly like I had envisioned them looking when I started, they were incredibly simple to make and very delicious!

I suppose each roll up was like a little lasagna parcel. Nice and contained, with just enough cheese filling and meat sauce.  The sauce is what makes any lasagna, and this was really lovely! Simple and uncomplicated.   That's how I like my food most of all!

Some other small batch main dishes here in The English Kitchen that you might enjoy are:

CLASSIC POT ROAST FOR TWO -  I think Pot Roast has to be one of my favorite meals, but I don't want to be eating it for a week. I devised a recipe which is just the right size for a small family with one meal of leftovers. Fork tender melt in the mouth beef with a flavor filled gravy. You can't go wrong!

WHITE CHICKEN CHILI FOR TWO - Everything for this white chicken chili basically gets put into a saucepan and heated together. Nothing could be easier to make! This is hearty and delicious with wow flavors.  Low in carbs, high in protein, low in fat and mighty tasty! Sized for two. What more could you ask for?

Yield: 4 roll ups

Author: Marie Rayner

Lasagna Roll Ups (small batch)

Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 40 MinTotal time: 1 Hour

All the flavors of a classic lasagna without all of the layering, etc. Smaller sized for the smaller family and every bit as delicious as a full sized version.

Ingredients

• 4 long ruffle edged lasagna noodles, cooked according to the package directions
• 2 fat sweet Italian sausages, skins removed and discarded
• 10 ounces (1 1/4 cups/284g) food quality marinara sauce
• 1/2 small onion, peeled and minced
• 2 fat cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• fine sea salt to taste
• black pepper to taste
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1 cup (8 ounces/226g) ricotta cheese
• 1 large free range egg yolk
• 2 TBS shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 1/2 cup (181g)grated Mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1 TBS dried Parsley flakes

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375*F/190*C/ gas mark 5. Butter a 7 or 8-inch square, deep, baking dish and set aside.
2. Cook your lasagna noodles according to the package directions and drain well. Rinse and return to a pot of cold water to help keep them from sticking together while you make the filling(s).
3. To make the meat filling, crumble the sausage meat into a saucepan. Scramble fry until no longer pink. Ad the onions and continue to fry until the onions have softened. Add the garlic, seasonings and oregano. Cook for a further minute until fragrant.
4. Add the marinara sauce. Bring to a simmer and then turn off the heat.
5. Whisk the ricotta cheese, egg yolk, Parmesan cheese and half of the mozzarella together with the dried parsley to combine.
6. Spoon 1/4 of the sausage sauce in the bottom of the baking dish, spreading it out.
7. Working with one noodle at a time, spread 1/4 of the ricotta filling over top and then spoon a heaped TBS of the sausage sauce in a strip down the middle on top of the ricotta. Roll up from one short end.
8. Place into the baking dish, and repeat with the other three noodles. Spoon any remaining sauce over top and sprinkle on the remaining mozzarella cheese.
9. Cover tightly with a sheet of buttered aluminum foil, butter side down. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes. Uncover and bake for 5 to 10 minutes longer until the cheese is light golden brown.
10. Leave to stand for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

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