Florentine Lasagna Roll-ups

I haven't made a lasagna roll-up in years. I don't know why; they're so easy to make and more fun than regular lasagna because everyone gets their own roll or two. As soon as Kylee posted these Florentine Lasagna Roll-ups on her blog I knew I had to make them.

I prepped the roll-ups on a Sunday and popped it in the fridge for later in the week. The night we had them for dinner I just had to preheat the oven, make the salad while the roll-ups cooked and dinner was served. I love easy meals like that.

The only change I made was adding ricotta cheese to the filling. I had some to use up and ricotta is synonymous with lasagna, in my opinion. But feel free to leave it out since there's enough going on with that delectable Alfredo sauce.

Florentine Lasagna Roll-ups
Slightly modified from Kylee Cooks

Alfredo sauce:
1 stick butter
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2oz cream cheese
2 cups half and half
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

12 lasagna noodles

Filling:
2 cups cooked and shredded chicken
1 1/2 cups baby spinach, chopped finely
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella, or cheese of your choice

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Add the cream cheese and whisk until smooth. Whisk in the half and half. Season with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning. Bring to a simmer (don�t boil!) and whisk frequently until the sauce thickens, about 15 minutes. Add the Parmesan and whisk until melted and blended. Set aside,

Cook the lasagna noodles according to package directions. Drain and rinse the noodles with cold water. Lay them out to dry on clean kitchen towels. This will make them easier to work with.

While the noodles are cooking, combine the chicken, spinach, ricotta, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and 1 cup mozzarella cheese in a large bowl.

Spread about half a cup of the Alfredo sauce in a 9x13" baking dish. Working with one noodle at a time, place some filling onto each noodle, then roll it up. Place each roll seam side down into your baking dish. Top with the remaining Alfredo sauce and 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese. (If making in advance, stop here, cover the dish with foil or plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to bake).

Bake at 350 degrees, for about 30 minutes until the casserole is heated through and cheese is bubbling.

Overnight Ham and Cheese Breakfast Enchiladas

My mom warned me there would be a lot of leftover Easter ham this year so I figured I'd better have a game plan in place. As luck would have it, this recipe for Overnight Ham and Cheese Breakfast Enchiladas showed up in my blog reader right before the holiday. I love make-ahead casseroles and this was intriguing because it involved tortillas instead of bread.

I was worried the egg mixture would turn the tortillas into mush like a typical strata but I needn't have worried. This was so easy to prep since there's no cooking involved, just chopping/grating.

Since I was serving this for dinner I assembled it in the morning and then baked it off that night. Delicious, filling and a great way to use up some of the leftover ham. I'll definitely be making this one again.

Overnight Ham and Cheese Breakfast Enchiladas
As seen on The Girl Who Ate Everything

2 cups cubed and cooked ham
1/2 cup chopped green onions
2 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
8 flour tortillas (6-8 inches)
1 1/4 cups half-and-half
4 whole eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon flour
salsa, sour cream, diced avocado and additional green onions for serving

In a medium bowl stir together ham, green onions and 2 cups of cheese (save the remaining 1/2 cup for later).

Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Use a 1/3-cup measuring cup to scoop out cheese mixture onto a tortilla. Roll up tortilla and place seam side down in the baking dish. Roll up all tortillas and place them into the baking dish with the sides touching.
Whisk together half-and-half, eggs, salt, and flour. Pour over tortillas. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning, preheat oven to 350�. Bake for 30-40 minutes. Remove and sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup of cheese over enchiladas. Bake for 10 more minutes or until tops are golden brown and the egg mixture is set.

Serve with salsa, sour cream, avocado and additional green onions.

Recipe Swap: Scalloped Potatoes and Ham

Want to see what other One Pot Meal recipes were made during the swap? Here is the link to the One Pot Meal Recipe Swap Roundup

The theme for this recipe swap is One Pot meals. Most people love having meals in their arsenal that involve mixing a few ingredients together and letting the oven or crock pot do most of the work. I've always wanted to make Scalloped Potatoes and Ham so I was excited to get Ashley's recipe.


In the interest of full disclosure, SP was not a fan of this one. At all. He was put off immediately by the red potatoes, claiming scalloped potatoes should only be made with Yukon gold or russets. After baking this I have to agree. Even after an hour and a half of baking the red potatoes were still a bit crunchy. Yukon gold or russet seem to break down better when cooking, which is why they are preferable for a recipe like this. Even so, I absolutely loved this recipe and his dislike meant I got all the leftovers. I actually ate this three days in a row, which is pretty impressive. I'm usually a dinner and lunch the next day-only leftovers eater.

Based on my experience making this I made quite a few changes in the recipe below, swapping the red potatoes for Yukon gold or russets, pre-cooking the potatoes in the milk and cream mixture like I do for my potato gratin, and modifying the seasonings to suit our tastes. I think the changes will elevate this to excellent and hopefully I can convince SP to let me try again.

This is true comfort food and perfect for this time of year. Thanks for a delicious one pot meal, Ashley!

Scalloped Potatoes and Ham
Modified from Cheesecurd in Paradise

2 large cloves garlic, 1 halved and 1 minced
3 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup heavy cream
2 1/2 pounds Yukon gold or russet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
4 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
12-16 ounces cooked ham steaks

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Rub an 2 1/2-quart baking dish with the cut sides of the garlic halves and discard the halves. Coat the inside of the dish with 1 tablespoon of the butter.

In a large pot, combine the milk, cream, minced garlic, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, fresh thyme and the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Add the potato slices to the milk mixture. Repeat with remaining potatoes. Bring the milk mixture to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Cover and cook for 3 minutes. Add shredded cheese and stir to melt.

Meanwhile, heat a large, dry skillet over medium heat. Add the ham steaks and cook on both sides until it begins to brown in spots and some of the liquid is released. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly before cutting into cubes.

Transfer half of the potatoes to the prepared dish. Add half the ham. Top with the remaining potatoes and ham. Pour all of the milk mixture over the potatoes. Cover the dish with buttered aluminum foil, buttered side down.

Bake for 40 minutes, then uncover and bake until the potatoes are tender, the liquid bubbles thickly and the top is brown and crusty, about 20 minutes longer. Remove from the oven, let stand for 10 minutes, then serve.