Lasagna Roll-Ups

We LOVE lasagna around here, but it's hard to justify making a whole pan for just the two of us.

Good or bad, it takes us a couple settings to polish off the whole pan. I saw this recipe on blogchef.com, and immediately thought that this may be the solution to the problem of too much lasagna. The portions on this recipe were great. We had supper one night, and after lunch the next day, the leftovers were gone. It also tastes just like a traditional lasagna, so you do not feel like you are missing anything.

The only downside was that it took about the same amount of time to make the roll-ups as it would have to make a full pan of lasagna. The oven cook time was less, but it was absolutely necessary to pre-cook the noodles (something I never do with a pan of lasagna!).

Noodles loaded with the cheese mixture before rolling.

Lasagna Roll-ups

Sauce-

1/2 lb ground beef

2 tablespoons onion, chopped (I used more)

2 garlic cloves (minced)

1 (16 oz) can crushed tomatoes

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon dried oregano

1 dash cayenne pepper (or more to your taste)

Filling-

1 ¼ cups small curd cottage cheese

¼ cup grated parmesan cheese

1 egg (lightly beaten) -- I always leave this out of lasagna; we never miss it.

1 tablespoon fresh parsley (minced)

¼ teaspoon onion powder

6 lasagna noodles (cooked)

½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

In a large skillet cook ground beef, onion and garlic until the beef is no longer pink. Drain any excess fat from the pan. Add tomatoes, oregano, salt and cayenne. Simmer for 10 minutes. Spread half of the meat sauce on the bottom of a greased 9” baking dish.

In a bowl combine cottage cheese, parmesan cheese, egg, parsley and onion powder. Spread ¼ cup of the cheese mixture evenly over each lasagna noodle. Roll up and place seam side down in rows in the baking dish. Top with remaining sauce.

Bake in the oven at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes. About 5 minutes before the dish is finished cooking remove from the oven and top with shredded mozzarella cheese. Return to oven and cook until cheese has melted.(Makes 2 servings)