Lasagna Roll-ups

Lasagna is such a crowd pleaser. It's a lot easier to make a huge pan of lasagna with the Oven-Ready noodles, or fixing a Crock-Pot full of lasagna, so if you are feeding a big family, I recommend going one of those routes.

But if you want to have smaller portions available, for just 1 or 2 dinners or even lunches, these are fantastic. They are a little more work on the front end, but the convenience of the portions is worth it. Plus you are guaranteed to get the right proportion of noodles and cheese, which is really important to me. I don't like noodle hogs leaving me with too much ricotta. ;)

This is also a fantastic dish to make ahead and freeze. See directions below!  The pictures below show a double batch of roll-ups.

Lasagna Roll-ups

Ingredient List for a single batch:

1 box regular Lasagna Noodles

24 oz (1.5 lbs) Ricotta Cheese 

2 Eggs

3/4 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated

3/4 cup Mozarella Cheese, shredded

1 Tbsp Basil

1 Tbsp Parsley

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 tsp Pepper

Marinara Sauce - you can use jars of sauce, or make it from scratch. Here is my "super easy" recipe that starts with a pizza sauce base. I have been adding lots of veggies to it lately though (diced onion, bell pepper, shredded carrots, shredded zucchini, etc.)

Step 1. Boil Lasagna Noodles according to package directions. I use my giant stock pot for this job, so the noodles have plenty of room to move around in the boiling water. If you are using a regular pot, you may need to cook the noodles in smaller batches. I was able to cook 20 noodles (the whole box) in my big 12 qt stock pot.

While the noodles are cooking, lay out aluminum foil and give it a quick spray with oil to keep the noodles from sticking to it. When the noodles are done, lay them out on the foil. Be careful, they will be hot!

Step 2: Combine all filling ingredients. I use my Kitchenaid Mixer for this. Spread filling over each noodle. 

Step 3: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll up the noodles and place them seam-side down on the tray. It's ok if they are close but you don't want them to be touching. Freeze.

Step 4: Once frozen, package the rollups into freezer bags. I just put them all in one gallon-size ziploc and pull out however many I want to cook at a time. Freeze.

To cook, just put them in your baking dish, top with marinara sauce, and bake at 350° until bubbly, about 30 minutes. Top with mozarella cheese and bake for an extra 5 minutes until melted. You can make 1 or 2 in a small dish, or cook a larger batch for the whole family.

Optional: Put in your family's serving size in a ziploc, add 2 cups of marinara sauce to each bag and freeze. For my family I would put in 6 rollups, since we make 2 for each adult and one for each child. When ready to cook, cut away the bag, put the contents into a baking dish, cover with foil and bake at 350° until bubbly. It will take close to an hour this way. Top with mozzarella and bake an extra 5 minutes, then serve.

Grown Up Mac and Cheese with Chicken Parm Bites

Sometimes you cook actual food and other times you eat boxed mac and cheese. And sometimes you combine them. :)

We made some Chicken Parmesan Bites. Yum!

Then we made some Grown Up Mac and Cheese. Yum!

Put them together. You can thank me later. :)

Of course, you can make homemade mac and cheese too. I do that sometimes, but probably not as often as let Annie's help me out.

Grown Up Mac and Cheese

Sometimes we take shortcuts for meals. That sometimes includes boxed mac and cheese. We get the Annie's brand from BJs and it's nice to have a quick meal to throw together for the kids.

And sometimes for the grown-ups. We spice ours up, though. :)

Grown Up Mac and Cheese

1-2 boxes Macaroni and Cheese, prepared as directed on box

1 Bell Pepper, diced
1 Tomato or 1/2 cup of Salsa - or both!
Black Pepper, Pepper Blend and maybe even a pinch of Cayenne Pepper

Mix the veggies and pepper into to the mac and cheese, and serve.

Manicotti

You can use any pasta for this - manicotti, jumbo shells, or lasagna noodles. If you use lasagna, cook them and lay them out, spread the cheese mixture down the noodle and roll them up.
 

Manicotti

1 pkg Manicotti, cooked according to package directions (maybe one minute less)
1 15 oz container Ricotta Cheese
1 Egg
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
1 cup Mozzarella Cheese, grated (plus 1 more cup for serving)
1 tsp Basil
1 tsp Oregano
1 quart Marinara Sauce (I make it up ahead and freeze it; a jar of sauce also works but it probably costs more!)

Preheat oven to 350*. Cook pasta according to package directions, only take them off about a minute early and drain.  Spray a 13x9 baking pan with cooking spray.

Mix ricotta, parmesan and mozzarella cheeses with the egg and herbs. Spoon into cooked pasta, and set into prepared pan. Pour sauce over all and bake for 20-30 minutes, until bubbly.

If serving immediately, top with additional mozzarella cheese. Put it back in the oven for a few minutes to melt if desired.

If freezing, portion the manicotti (and make sure you get sauce for each one, too) into freezer-safe containers and freeze. To serve, thaw and bake until warm, and top with mozzarella cheese.

For a super easy and quick marinara sauce, take some pizza sauce and add diced tomatoes and sauteed veggies, and cooked ground beef if you like.

Chicken Noodle Soup

There's nothing like a bowl (or mug!) of chicken noodle soup when you aren't feeling 100%. Homemade bone broth helps boost the immune system, too.

Chicken Noodle Soup

4 cups Chicken Broth (click here for how I make mine from scratch)
1 cup Cooked Chicken, chopped or shredded (if you cook a whole chicken you can use the meat and make the broth from it too)
1 Onion, diced
Garlic (optional - I add it if we are getting sick, 1-4 cloves depending on your taste)
2-3 Carrots, sliced
1 Tbsp Dill
1 tsp Basil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Egg Noodles, cooked

In a medium sauce pan, heat some broth on medium heat and cook the onions until translucent. If you're using garlic, you can add it here. Throw in the carrots and seasoning and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the rest of the broth, bring to a boil, and then lower the heat to simmer for 30 minutes to an hour, until the carrots are done.

Cook noodles separately and when you're ready to serve the soup, put a spoonful in the bottom of the bowl, and ladle the soup over the noodles. This will keep them from soaking up too much liquid and getting mushy, and you can save the leftover soup and noodles (separately) to eat another time.

American Chop Suey aka Goulash

This is a dish my husband grew up with - we added diced tomatoes to it and some spices.  Super easy and simple, and the leftovers heat up well for lunch the next day.

American Chop Suey aka Goulash

1 lb Ground Beef
1/4 cup Onion, chopped (optional)
1/2 cup Bell Peppers, chopped (optional)

1 can Stewed Tomatoes

1 can Diced Tomatoes

1 lb Macaroni

Cook macaroni according to package directions.  Brown ground beef (with veggies if using) until no longer pink.  Add tomatoes. Heat together and serve over pasta.

Top with parmesan or shredded mozzarella cheese, if desired.