Lasagna Rolls

What if you feel like a nice lasagna, but don't have the time or energy to prepare an entire tray? Here's a quick way to enjoy all of the lasagna flavors in a quicker, rolled up version. I made a béchamel with skim milk, then coated a glass baking dish. Then I piled a light ricotta/spinach/parmesan filling onto a cooked lasagna noodle and rolled it up. Once I had 6 of those I placed them in the dish on top of the béchamel, then ladled on some marinara sauce, light mozzarella and a bit of parmesan reggiano. In 20 minutes you've got a nice gooey lasagna dish, that's low cal and satisfying.

This was based on a recipe shown on Giada De Laurentis' "Everyday Italian"

Lasagna Rolls

Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted light butter

• 4 teaspoons all-purpose flour

• 1 1/4 cups skim milk

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

• Pinch ground nutmeg

Lasagna:

• 1 (15-ounce) container skim milk ricotta cheese

• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry

• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

• 1 large egg, beaten to blend

• 3/4 teaspoon salt, plus more for salting water

• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 12 uncooked lasagna noodles

• 2 cups marinara sauce

• 1 cup shredded light mozzarella (about 4 ounces)

Directions

To make the sauce: Melt the light butter in a heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the flour and whisk for 3 minutes. Whisk in the skim milk. Increase the heat to medium-high. Whisk the sauce until it comes to a simmer and is thick and smooth, about 3 minutes. Whisk the salt, pepper, and nutmeg into the bechamel sauce.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Whisk the light ricotta, spinach, 1 cup Parmesan, egg, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl to blend.

Boil the noodles until just tender but still firm to bite. Drain. Arrange the noodles in a single layer on a baking sheet to prevent them from sticking.

Spray a 13-by-9-by-2-inch glass baking dish with some Pam. Pour the bechamel sauce over the bottom of the prepared dish. Lay out 4 lasagna noodles on a work surface, then spread about 3 tablespoons of ricotta mixture evenly over each noodle. Starting at 1 end, roll each noodle like a jelly roll. Lay the lasagna rolls seam side down, without touching, on top of the bechamelsauce in the dish. Repeat with the remaining noodles and ricotta mixture. Spoon 1 cup of marinara sauce over the lasagna rolls. Sprinkle the mozzarella and remaining 2 tablespoons of Parmesan over the lasagna rolls. Cover tightly with foil. Bake until heated through and the sauce bubbles, about 20 minutes. Uncover and bake until the cheese on top becomes golden, about 15 minutes longer. Let stand for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the remaining marinara sauce in a heavy small saucepan over medium heat until hot, and serve alongside.