Hey ya’ll! I’ve really been looking forward to making lasagna because it’s one of my all-time favorites, and it was also one of the first recipes I really learned to do well. Besides, it’s just one of those feel-good comfort foods that you can make anytime, so you never need to justify this dish — just do it!
Before I got married, my lasagna recipe was pretty much tomato sauce, a bit of cheese, spinach, mushrooms and lasagna noodles. I almost never used meat, and always jam packed it with as many veggies as possible. Alas, now that I need to work with Jonathan’s more meat-loving palette, I’ve integrated more meat into the mix, albeit in small amounts.
This recipe is a somewhat lighter version than your classic lasagna because it’s not smothered in cheese and cream, but doesn’t skimp on flavor as a result — it’s perfection. In France, lasagna is usually made with a béchamel sauce… soo good, but soo much butter! My version can also be made without the sausage and it’s pretty good, too, for a vegetarian option. I just double the spinach and add about a cup of chopped cooked mushrooms to the filling instead of the chopped sausage.
Give this one a try and let me know what you think! And if anyone knows where to find curly-edged lasagna noodles in the UK or France, then please leave the details in the comments below 😉
Also you guys, I’m super excited to tell you that I have teamed up with a few other bloggers to post about 4th of July & summer entertaining recipes and ideas!
- Renee @ joyineveryseason.com has started off the series with her fabulous baked beans recipe (plus some gorgeous red, white & blue decorations), so please check that out on her website here: http://www.joyineveryseason.com/side-dishes/the-best-baked-beans4th-of-july-decor/
- Phoebe @ theolivetreekitchen.com just followed-up with her delightfully refreshing and fruity summer ice and drinks, here: http://theolivetreekitchen.com/2015/07/02/summer-ices-and-bbq-drinks/
- This Friday, we will also be sharing a vegan recipe from Sam @ itdoesnttastelikechicken.com so keep an eye out for that!
As for me, I’ll be back on Saturday with a few more 4th of July ideas to wrap up the series! See you then 🙂
Ingredients:
- 3 cups of homemade marinara sauce
- 1 cup of ricotta cheese
- 1 cup of shredded mozzarella
- ½ cup of parmesan cheese
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 200 grams of ground sausage (any sausage is fine, though I use only turkey or beef).
- 1 cup of fresh spinach
- 2 cloves of minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
Topping:
- ½ cup of shredded mozzarella
- 1 cup of tomato sauce
- Basil for garnish (optional)
Instructions:
- Put a pot large enough for your lasagna noodles on high heat to boil.
- Prepare your baking dish with a layer (about an inch) of the tomato sauce. Set aside until you’re ready to assemble the rolls.
- Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
- Combine the three cheeses in a bowl, then add in the egg and garlic powder. Stir until uniform.
- Heat a skillet on medium heat, then add in the olive oil and minced garlic. Sautée for 1 minute, then add in the fresh spinach. Continue to sautée for 4-5 minutes, stirring often, until the spinach has cooked down, then add the cooked spinach to the bowl with the cheese mixture.
- In same skillet used for the spinach, add in the ground sausage.
- By this time, your water should be boiling and it’s time to add in the noodles. Boil them until they are al dente – not mushy! For my noodles, this takes around 6-7 minutes.
- Once cooked, drain the pasta well into a colander removing all excess water & pour on a very small amount of olive oil to prevent sticking. Don’t add too much oil, otherwise your rolls won’t hold together when you bake them!
- While you allow the noodles to cool down a bit, lay down a piece of wax paper (or a clean & oiled cookie sheet) to place your noodles on for assembly.
- Once cool enough to not burn your fingers, place the noodles on the wax paper.
- Thinly layer on the cheese & spinach mixture evenly, all the way to the edges of the noodles.
- Spoon on the ground sausage in the middle of the noodle – if you go too close to the edges, it will just fall out.
- Roll up each noodle and place it in the prepared baking dish.
- Once all of your rolls are in the dish, spoon more sauce on top of each roll, then sprinkle on the shredded mozzarella.
- Bake uncovered for 25 minutes, or until the cheese is browned.
Notes: The options for non-pork sausage are quite slim where I shop, so I usually get whatever they have available, which are usually in the form of sausage links. To mince them, I just throw them in my stand blender and pulse a few times to get a nice uniform ground sausage. I hope you enjoy, because these spinach lasagna rolls are the bomb!