Luxuries Spinach Lasagna Roll-Ups with Eggplant takes this wonderful Italian pasta dish to new heights! Lovely ricotta, mozzarella, Parmigiano, and fried eggplant all rolled up into a spiral and baked in a tomato sauce. Talk about comfort food with a side of beauty!
If you love lasagna, this will definitely be a must-try for you! It's Italian comfort food at its finest!
Song of the day: "I Venti del Cuore"" by Fiorella Mannoia
Always a favorite
For as long as I can remember, lasagna has been one of those pasta dishes that I love. The layers of filling and pasta. More so, that melted cheese and crispy topping and edges. What's not to love, right? Well, today I am sharing that passion for lasagna and so excited to show you these Luxurious Spinach Lasagna Roll-Ups with Eggplant! Let's get started!
Great ingredients, great food!
Indeed, getting good quality ingredients is for us the key to having that amazing flavor in a dish, one that would wow the people you are sharing it with. However, if you are cooking for yourself, why not wow you!
For this dish we need the following ingredients:
- Asian eggplant
- spinach lasagna sheets, the corrugated ones
- ricotta cheese
- fresh mozzarella
- grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- San Marzano tomatoes, canned
- garlic
- onion
- fresh basil
- dried red chili flakes
Being organized helps considerably
I am sure you heard me say this before, but I will say it again. It really helps to plan your steps so that your recipe comes together easily.
Firstly starts with prepping all the veggies. Slice and peel the eggplant, chop up the onion, dice up the mozzarella, grate the Parmigiano, and mince that garlic.
Secondly, make the sauce. It usually takes about 20-25 minutes to cook. Similarly, frying the eggplant takes up that much time too. In conclusion, once the eggplant is all fried up the sauce will be ready and lastly, we need to cook the lasagna sheets. Just boil in salted water, no oil please, and in just a few minutes that is done with assembling just around the corner!
A simple sauce is all you need
We don't like to complicate food. With that being said, the sauce that will caress these lasagna roll-ups is simple. Just get some olive oil in a pot, throw in the garlic and chili flakes and stir it around a bit to get all those flavors acquainted. Turn on the heat and when that garlic just starts to sizzle, add in the tomatoes, and basil. Some seasoning of salt and pepper to taste and that is it. It just has to simmer for a bit and thicken.
Crushed or whole?
When buying your stewed tomatoes look for the whole tomatoes, better organic ones. The quality is there and also the sweetness. Today we are using San Marzano which just happens to be from a region in Italy known for its incredible tomatoes. They are long and plump. I like to buy the ones that are whole and then I get my hands into them and crush and smash them. What can I say, I like to play with my food. You could buy diced or crushed, it is all up to you!
The fun is about to begin
I love this part, the assembly. More so, you will begin to see just how beautiful these roll-ups are. So get all your stuff together and close by: ricotta, mozzarella, tomato sauce, pasta sheets, eggplant, and Parmigiano.
First, we need to spread the ricotta onto the lasagna sheet, then a sprinkle of Parmigiano, followed by diced mozzarella, and finally the strips of fried eggplant. Next, starting at the end close to you, begin rolling the lasagna sheet away from you until you reach the end. With the seam side down take a knife and cut the roll in half so you have two spirals with crinkled edges. You will end up with 12 roll-ups.
Beautifully nestled
In a baking dish, ladle in a good amount of sauce leaving some for the top and plating. This is where those lovely roll-ups will reside with the cut side down. Continue this until all the lasagna roll-ups are in the dish.
A little cheese topper for good measure
So we have all the spirals into the baking dish sitting in that pool of rich tomato sauce. Furthermore, we need to get that top all nice and prepped before it goes into a hot oven that you pre-heated.
With a spoon, sparsely drop some sauce on top. Then sprinkle in the diced mozzarella and Parmigiano, finishing with some Italian seasoned breadcrumbs, and a splash of olive oil. The end result will be fabulous, crispy, gooey, and lovely golden in color!
Into the middle rack of the oven you go!
Let's talk mozzarella
It is very easy to buy those pre-shredded packs of mozzarella, however, they do have lots of salt and are pretty processed. Once in a while not a bad thing, but today we are all about great ingredients and I will be using fresh mozzarella.
This cheese is hand formed and is the freshest cheese you will ever taste. When melted it is not rubbery, it is creamy and luxurious. More so, taking it to that crispiness is a whole other story!
Oh my! Truly Luxurious Spinach Lasagna
These Luxurious Spinach Lasagna Roll-ups look absolutely beautiful. Also, that aroma is making my stomach growl and I can't wait to plate this. Look at those crispy bits, the color, to me that just says delicious scrumptiousness!
Plating
I love plating the food. Putting that extra touch to make it enticing. I spooned some sauce at the bottom of the plate, then placed two of the luxurious spinach lasagna roll-ups on. A little fresh basil for garnish and that's it!
I'm digging in!
I can't wait any longer, I am going in! Absolutely love the richness of the sauce and how you have a play of crispy and velvety texture. The ricotta is luxuriously nestled in the pasta with the flavors of the eggplant really adding dimension to this dish. Moreover, the cheese on the inside is soft and creamy, and the top so crispy and golden. This is such a lovely dish and it has been a pleasure sharing it with you.
I hope you are as excited as I am about this Luxurious Spinach Lasagna Roll-ups with Eggplant. A perfect Italian comfort meal to share with your family!
Enjoy!
Do you love baked pasta dishes? Check out our Italian Baked Ziti or Oven Baked Spinach Ricotta Stuffed Paccheri.
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Luxurious Spinach Lasagna Roll-ups with Eggplant
Luxuries Spinach Lasagna Roll-ups takes this wonderful Italian pasta dish to new heights! Lovely ricotta, mozzarella, Parmigiano, and fried eggplant all rolled up into a spiral and baked in a tomato sauce. Talk about comfort food with a side of beauty!
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: serves 4 people 1x
Ingredients
The pasta:
- 6 dry spinach lasagna sheets
The sauce:
- 1 x 26oz can San Marzano tomatoes
- 2 Tbsp evo oil
- ½ cipollini onion
- 1 clove of garlic
- a pinch of red chili flakes
- 4 basil leaves
- a pinch of salt and pepper
The filling:
- 3 Asian eggplants
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ¾ ricotta
- 375 g fresh mozzarella, cubed
- ¼ cup grated Parmigiano
The topper:
- 2 Tbsp Italian-style breadcrumbs
- some of the diced mozzarella
- some grated Parmigiano
- a splash of olive oil
Instructions
Prep:
- Finely chop the onion, mince the garlic.
- Remove the peel and slice eggplant into long strips about ⅛ inch thick, then place on a plate.
- Take tomatoes out of the can and crush them with your hands or with a hand blender.
The sauce:
- In a medium saucepot, drizzle in olive oil. Toss in onion, garlic, and red chili flakes. Swirl ingredients with a spoon then turn on the heat to a medium setting.
- When garlic and onion start to sizzle, pour in tomatoes, and then add basil leaves.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste then partially cover and turn heat to a simmer. Cook for about 25-30 minutes or until thickened.
The eggplant:
- While the sauce is simmering, heat up olive oil in a sauté pan then place eggplant strips in and cook for about 2 minutes a side or until they start to turn golden in color.
- Place the cooked eggplant on a paper towel-lined plate. Continue cooking eggplant until they are all done. Set aside.
- Get a large pot of salted water on boil.
The lasagna sheets:
- Place lasagna sheets into the pot of boiling salted water and cook as instructed on the package. Take out once cooked and drain. Place in a bowl.
Assembly:
- Gather your ingredients: ricotta, pasta noodles, mozzarella, fried eggplant, tomato sauce, and Parmigiano in front of you.
- Take one of the cooked lasagna sheets and place it on a plate, spread a tablespoon of the ricotta onto the sheet. Add on diced mozzarella and grated Parmigiano.
- Top with 1-2 slices of the fried eggplant and start to roll with the closest end to you, rolling forward to the other end. Place roll-up seam side down.
- Cut in half so you have two roll-ups with crinkled edges.
- In a 9 x 13 baking dish ladle in a good amount of tomato sauce, saving some for the top and plating. Place the roll-ups cut side down into the sauce. Continue this process until all the rolls are in the dish. There will be 12.
Finishing touches:
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees Celsius).
- Spoon some of the tomato sauce sparsely on top. Sprinkle on some of the mozzarella and Parmigiano.
- Dust with the breadcrumbs and a drizzle of olive oil, and into the middle rack of the oven you go for about 20 minutes. For the last 2 minutes, I turn the grill on and get that top nice and crispy. Watch it though because it could burn. Take out of the oven and let sit for 5-10 minutes.
Plating:
- Spoon some of the leftover sauce onto the plate creating a pool. Take two of the rollups and put them on top of the tomato sauce.
- Garnish with fresh basil. Ready to serve.
Notes
You can use the plain lasagna pasta sheets, however, cut them in half.
If you can't find the eggplant you can use zucchini if you want, or omit it.
If you don't want to crush the whole tomatoes, buy them already diced or pureed.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Category: Main/side
- Method: stovetop/baked
- Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: lasagna roll ups, Italian, san marzano tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, parmigiano cheese, eggplant
When I am not cooking, I enjoy playing musical instruments, singing, writing. I have learned over the years to live in gratitude and enjoy the moment.
Ramya says
will be making this and your eggplant ravioli with few subs i love eggplant and itaitan food sooooooooo much Thanks Ramya
Hi Ramya, thank you so much for liking this recipe and wanting to try it. It is so worth it because it is delicious. Let us know how you make out!
Cheers!
amyg says
This is a great way to get more veggies in with dinner and the idea of spinach lasagna sheets layered with vegetables sound like a great option for people who want more veggies at a meal. Definitely pinning this for later.
★★★★★
Thanks Amy, you are right, it is a great way to get your veggies in and the options are endless. You could use in replacement of the eggplant: spinach, zucchini, mushrooms, caramelized onions, squash, I could go on for ever!
Happy cooking!
Shelby Stover says
I can never manage to cook eggplant lol I think I need o give this a go!
★★★★★
Hi Shelby, please do, we make cooking eggplant so so easy and in these roll ups it is absolutely fantastic!
Happy eggplant cooking! lol.
Cheers!
Colleen says
Oh my goodness, I'm seriously drooling here!. This looks amazing and I love that you made it as roll-ups. I love eggplant and can't wait to give this recipe a try.
★★★★★
Thanks Colleen, just had to make this and share it because it is a lovely dish that is amazing in flavor and texture. Very happy you like this and we are both excited for you to try it!
Cheers!
Vanessa says
We love lasagna and this version looks absolutely beautiful and delicious. Perfect for Sunday dinner!
★★★★★
We agree Vanessa! It presents well, has a wonderful enticing aroma, and mosdt of all it is lusciously delicious!
Thank you for checking it out!
Happy Monday!
Shailaja Desai says
Creativity and innovation at its best. Love this recipe share Loretto & Nicoletta! Hope you are well my friends.
We are Thank you! so happy you liked this and got to love innovation and creativity. Two of my most favorite things! Thanks for your inspiring words!
Cheers!
NANCY says
love how you rolled up the eggplants and baked it into the lasagna.... looks so tasty!!
★★★★★
loreto says
Thank you Nancy! Yes these were a lot of fun to make and equally delicious and scrumptious. I could never say no to these ever.!
Cheers!