Spinach Lasagna Roll-Ups
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Filled with a mix of cheeses, marinara, fresh herbs, and spinach, Spinach Lasagna Roll-Ups are a delicious version of traditional lasagna where the ingredients are rolled up instead of layered. These lasagna rolls even made our top list of vegetarian meals for kids, because all ages love these!
“This is a great recipe! I’ve doubled and tripled it before, frozen batches, and it always turns out great! I’m planning to bring the next round to a new mama. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️” – Amanda
Highlights of This Recipe
- Filled with flavor thanks to the fresh herbs and mix of cheeses.
- Vegetarian but super filling.
- Great way to include some sneaky nutrition in a kid-favorite meal.
- Freezer-friendly. Tastes like a fresh meal if you use our instructions.
- Big-batch recipe, so it’s a great inexpensive recipe when serving a group.
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make Spinach Lasagna Roll-Ups…
Ingredient Notes
- Lasagna noodles – I like to use whole wheat noodles if you can find them, because they are fiber-rich and less processed.
- Parsley and basil – Fresh, minced herbs are best but dried will work if needed.
- Frozen chopped spinach – It’s imperative to this recipe to use frozen spinach, but it has to be thawed and drained well. The good news is that frozen spinach is such a bargain! You’d have to buy loads of fresh spinach to get the same amount.
- Marinara sauce – The sauce is a main component of this recipe, so be sure to use high-quality sauce like our Homemade Marinara Sauce or Raos brand.
Pro Tip
Add shredded cooked chicken in the spinach lasagna rolls if you want to add in more protein.
How to Make Spinach Lasagna Roll-Ups
Prepare the noodles & filling
Cook your whole wheat lasagna noodles until they are al dente, toss with a little olive oil to prevent sticking, and lay them out on a cooking sheet.
Add the filling & marinara sauce
Spread the cheesy spinach mixture evenly over the noodles. Now spread some of that saucy goodness over the cheesy goodness. A lot of goodness happening right now.
Roll them up
Roll the noodles up, and place the seam side down in a greased pan that has a little of the marinara sauce in the bottom of it.
Top with cheese & bake
Top entire casserole with remaining sauce, remaining mozzarella, and remaining Parmesan cheese. Oh yes…this is gonna be GOOD. Bake at 375°F for 25-30 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.
Finally, serve hot and enjoy!
How to Freeze Lasagna Rolls
As I mentioned before, these roll ups freeze beautifully and can be a great freezer meal for a new mom! Since this is a big batch recipe, you can easily freeze half a batch in an 8×8 inch dish for another meal.
Here’s how to prep it as a freezer meal…
Freeze for Later: Assemble the lasagna rolls completely, but do not bake. Wrap the dish tightly in several layers of plastic wrap and 1 or 2 layers of foil, squeeze out excess air and freeze.
Prepare From Frozen: Thaw in the refrigerator for 24 hours. Set out on the counter for 30 minutes to bring to room temperature and then bake as directed.
Recipe FAQs
Instead of using less ingredients, consider assembling in two 8×8-inch pans and freezing one. Trust us, your future-self will thank you!
You have several options. You can thaw overnight in the fridge (12+ hours).
You can use cold water method by placing frozen spinach in a leak-proof bag, squeezing out any air, and submerging in cold water for 1-2 hours. Or you can
place the block of frozen spinach on a microwave-safe plate and use the microwave’s defrost setting.
Wrap thawed spinach in a tea towel and squeeze as much liquid from it as possible over the sink. Alternatively, you can place the spinach in a colander and press down on it to squeeze out the liquid.
Yes! If you make it a day or two before, just set it out on the counter while the oven is preheating and you should be able to bake as directed.
More Vegetarian Recipes You’ll Love
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Spinach Lasagna Roll-Ups
A family favorite packed with spinach, marinara sauce, and yummy cheese! Kids and adults alike love this comfort meal. Freezer instructions included.
Ingredients
- 1 (16-ounce) package uncooked lasagna noodles (you’ll need 16 noodles)
- Olive oil or avocado oil
- 2 (25-28 ounces) jars marinara sauce, divided (or use 6–7 cups Homemade Marinara Sauce)
- 2 cups (8-ounce bag) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- 1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided
- 1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed very dry
- 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley leaves (sub: 2 tablespoons dried parsley flakes)
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil leaves (sub: 1 tablespoon dried basil)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic (2 cloves)
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Instructions
Make It Now:
- Boil Noodles: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook at least 16 lasagna noodles until al dente (i.e. slightly undercooked), about 6 to 8 minutes. Drain in a colander. Coat them with a bit of olive oil, lay noodles out flat on a cookie sheet (divide layers with parchment paper), and set aside.
- Prep Pans: Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 9×13 inch baking dish (or two 8×8 inch dishes) with oil or cooking spray. Spread 1/2 cup of marinara sauce on the bottom of the 9×13 dish (or 1/4 cup in each 8×8 dish) in a thin layer.
- Make Filling: In a large mixing bowl, stir together 1 cup mozzarella cheese (reserve the other 1 cup), 1 cup Parmesan cheese (reserve the other 1/2 cup), ricotta cheese, eggs, spinach, parsley, basil, pepper, salt, and garlic.
- Roll Noodles: On each noodle, spread 1/4 cup of the cheese mixture and then 2 1/2 – 3 tablespoons of sauce. Note: You should have used up all the cheese mixture and one entire jar of sauce (3 – 3 1/2 cups) by this point, dividing them evenly among the noodles. Roll the noodles up, and place seam side down in the prepared pan(s). Squeeze them in however they fit best.
- Finish Casserole: Top entire casserole(s) with the remaining jar of sauce (3 – 3 1/2 cups), remaining 1 cup mozzarella, and remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. (Freezing instructions begin here.)
- Bake & Serve: Bake for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly on the edges and hot in the middle. Let sit for 5-10 minutes and garnish with lots of fresh chopped herbs.
Freeze For Later: Follow steps 1-5. (Do not bake). Wrap the casserole tightly in a few layers of plastic wrap and foil, squeezing out any excess air. Freeze for 3-6 months.
Prepare From Frozen: Thaw the casserole using one of these safe methods. Cook as directed in step 6.
Notes/Tips
- This is a big batch recipe. It’s easy to divide into two 8×8 inch dishes and freeze one for later.
- If you want these to look more like individual rolls after baking, be more precise when placing the sauce and cheese on top. Just put a dollop on each roll instead of spreading it out. Or try our faster Easy Cheesy Baked Pasta that uses a similar filling and penne pasta instead.
- How to Thaw Frozen Spinach:
-
- Thaw overnight in fridge. (12+ hours)
- Use cold water method. Place frozen spinach in leak-proof bag and squeeze out any air. Submerge in cold water for an hour or so. (1-2 hours)
- Place block of frozen spinach on a microwave-safe plate. Use microwave’s defrost setting for fastest thawing. (5 minutes)
- How to Drain Liquid from Frozen Spinach: Wrap thawed spinach in a tea towel and squeeze as much liquid from it as possible over the sink. Alternatively, you can place the spinach in a colander and press down on it to squeeze out the liquid.
-
Tips for Lasagna Noodles:
- Use whole wheat, plain, or gluten free noodles.
- Boil in salted water until al dente. Should still have a little bite to them when you taste test; do not over cook.
- After boiling, lay out noodles side by side on a greased sheet pan.
- Divide single layers of noodles with parchment paper.
- Spray the tops of each layer of noodles with cooking spray to prevent drying out or sticking.
- If you make these a few hours ahead, cover with a moist paper towel or plastic wrap until ready to use.
Photos and video by Whitney Reist of Sweet Cayenne.
These were great! Even my picky eater (who typically doesn’t like pasta) loved these!
So glad you found a winner for your picky eater Karen! Thanks for taking the time to leave a review.
How long would you cook if made the night before?? Thanks so much!
Hi Amanda. I’d set it out on the counter while the oven is preheating and then you should be able to bake as directed.
This is a great recipe! I’ve doubled and tripled it before, frozen batches, and it always turns out great! I’m planning to bring the next round to a new mama.
Thanks for the review! The first time I had a version of this recipe was when a friend made it for me as a new mom myself. I’m so happy to hear it’s being given to another new mama. 🙂
Can I bake it and then freeze it?
Yes, you can. However two things: 1) the texture will be a little mushier when you reheat it than if you freeze before baking, and 2) be sure to wrap it very tightly and to warm in the microwave at 50% power so you don’t dry it out more.
This looks delicious! Can you use fresh spinach instead of frozen.
Yes, for sure!
My family loved this recipe. So yummy. I used whole wheat lasagna noodles and added turkey Italian sausage. It is definitely a keeper.
This recipe is SO YUMMY. My family loves this and we’ve made it several times! When I make it, I divide a single batch into two 8×8 pans (since my family is small) and we bake one and freeze the other. My ONLY critique of this recipe is that it takes a significantly longer amount of time to cook after it has been thawed from frozen. I left it in the fridge for over 24 hours before baking, and it still took over an hour to warm through – and even then the middle roll was barely at 145-degrees, which probably isn’t quite hot enough. I wonder if you could leave the egg off the recipe, so you wouldn’t have to worry as much about cooking temperature? Or would it do better cooking at a lower temperature for longer? Anyway – that’s been my experience the last two times I’ve cooked it after thawing. It’s just very dense and hard to cook that middle part of the pan.
But otherwise — these are the BEST!!! 🙂 Thanks ladies!!
This could very well be the BEST dish we’ve ever made. The end result was better than restaurant quality (and that’s a direct quote, haha). Thank you so much for the recipe!!
Love that, Stefanie. Thanks for sharing this feedback! I’m glad it was a success!
this looks good!! the recipe calls for a 1 lb bag of mozzarella..but i only see 2 cups being used in the recipe which is what a 8 oz bag holds..so im just curious if its the 8 or 16 oz bag i should be buying? thanks!
Thanks for pointing this out, Amy. I corrected the recipe. Appreciate the feedback!
Where does the spinach go in the final recipe?
It’s mixed in with the cheese filling. Yum!