Italian Sausage Ricotta & Spinach Roll-ups

I love big trays of food especially when they are flavorful, meaty pasta dishes, I made these simple lasagna roll-ups filled with spinach and ricotta mixture. The sauce is made with tomatoes and very flavorful meaty Italian sausages that taste amazingly delicious.

Each bite has a creamy, cheesy taste along with the hearty meat sauce giving it a perfect flavor balance every time. Best part about of the dish is that you can add more meat and cheese as per taste and preference but I find the proportions well-balanced. This meal is perfect for family and friends dinner night or make ahead meals for yourself. You can freeze the cooked lasagna in the freezer for about 2 weeks or in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

Prep Time: 12-15 mins
Cooking Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

500gm Ricotta
1 cup spinach
8-9 lasagna sheets
4 cloves of minced garlic
4 tomatoes
2 medium-sized Italian Sausage
3 Tbsp tomato paste
1 Tbsp ketchup
1 Tbsp chili garlic sauce or siracha
1 tsp of chili powder
1 tsp dried oregano (plus more for garnish)
9-10 basil leaves
1 cup cheddar cheese
Salt, Pepper to taste
A handful of shaved parmesan cheese(optional)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350℉

Place a pan on medium heat; add a Tbsp olive oil, open the sausages and roughly chop the meat inside the Italian Sausage and add it to the pan. Cook for 2-3 mins and keep aside in a separate bowl.

To the same pan add crushed or pureed tomatoes, minced garlic and let it cook for 3-4 mins. Add tomato paste, ketchup, siracha or chili garlic sauce, chili powder, parmesan, salt pepper and cook for 3-4 mins. Turn off the heat, add in Italian Sausage that you kept aside along with basil leaves(leave a couple to top) and dried oregano and let it absorb flavors while you prepare roll-ups

In a small bowl; mix Ricotta, roughly chopped spinach, a generous amount of salt & pepper

Boil Lasagna sheets as per packaged instruction. Once boiled, spread ricotta and spinach mixture evenly and gently roll the sheets

Place the filled and rolled sheets in a baking tray, leaving some space between them. Evenly spread the meaty tomato sauce over the roll-ups so that they are covered in sauce. Top each of the roll-ups with a generous amount of cheddar cheese and some basil leaves (if using)

Cover the baking tray with foil and let me cook for 25 mins in the oven. Take the foil off and broil on low for 2-3 mins, garnish with dried oregano and serve. Allow it to cool a bit before serving as it would be piping hot on the inside