Caprese Lasagna Rollups

Photo cropped from CookingClassy.com

Gerry posted the recipe from CookingClassy.com on Facebook and I sent it to Ciara for Beth's baby shower menu. With a little bit of chopping advice and a few changes, Ciara made a yummy, delicious, pretty and elegant main dish.  In the Cooking Classy link the blog author explains why you wouldn't want to use fresh mozzarella cheese. You also don't want to drown the roll-ups in pasta sauce.

Ciara made a quadruple batch - it was certainly more than enough although I would recommend at least two roll-ups each for a hungrier crowd. The directions below are for one batch.

Cook 1/2 box (8 noodles) organic lasagna noodles (available at Whole Foods) until they are al dente. Drain them and then line them up on parchment paper on the counter.

Whisk together 3/4 c. Ricotta cheese and 1 large egg white.  Stir in 1/3 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese and about 12 ounces of shredded, low-moisture, part skim Mozzarella cheese and some freshly ground black pepper.  Spread an even layer of the cheese mixture over each noodle.

At this point, you can slice Roma tomatoes VERY thin or dice them. You'll need about 3-4 Roma tomatoes and Ciara diced them. Place equal amounts of the fresh tomatoes on each cheese layer on the noodles. Cover with 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil.

Spread 1/4 cup sauce (see below) in a baking dish.  Roll the lasagna noodles up as tight as you can without squeezing out the cheese and place them seam-side down in the sauce. Top each roll with 2 T. of the pasta sauce and sprinkle all with about 2 oz of Mozzarella.  Bake 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven and then sprinkle with more basil cut into ribbons.

For the sauce, Ciara used one she found at Whole Foods.  Use your favorite or use this CookingClassy one:

Simple Marinara Sauce
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup finely chopped yellow onion
• 2 cloves garlic finely minced
• 1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

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• Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Add onions to hot oil and saute about 3 minutes until soft, adding garlic during last minute of sauteing. Pour in crushed tomatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring mixture just to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and allow sauce to cook for about 25 - 30 minutes (which will allow some of the water in crushed tomatoes to evaporate) while you prepare pasta and lasagna filling (you can freeze or refrigerate left over sauce in a small airtight container for later use, adding fresh basil if desired).