Dreamy Spinach Rotolo

Inspired by ‘The Happy Pear”. Yummy lasagna rolls, baked in your favourite pasta sauce for a twist on the traditional lasagna.

Ingredients: 

Large white onion, thinly sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

½ lb mushrooms of your choice (e.g. cremini, oyster), thinly sliced or torn

2 tsp dried thyme, or several sprigs of fresh

2 Tbsp vegan Worcestershire or Tamari

1 ½ cups raw cashews, soaked and rinsed (soaked sunflower seeds can be substituted in part for a less rich, yet equally delicious sauce)

3-4 handfuls raw spinach, wilted and chopped or ~1/3 lb. frozen spinach, thawed and drained

1 tsp garlic powder

½ tsp salt

¾ c water

[1 cup water]

~12-16 whole grain or rice lasagna noodles, soaked or cooked until just ‘al dente’

3 cups red pasta sauce of choice

Directions:

Sauté onion in a dry non-stick pan, adding vegetable stock or water, 1 Tbsp at a time, to prevent sticking to the pan, adding garlic once onions become translucent. Add mushrooms and thyme and stir, then top with a heavy pan to press the moisture out, checking regularly to prevent sticking. Once the mushrooms are soft, deglaze the pan with 1-2 Tbsp of tamari or vegan Worcestershire sauce. Remove from heat and set aside.

Prepare a creamy spinach ‘ricotta’ filling by adding soaked and rinsed cashews to a high-speed blender jar, with garlic powder, salt and ¾ cups of cold water. Blend on high speed until you achieve a creamy consistency, adding more water 1 Tbsp at a time as needed. Remove from blender and add spinach to the sauce to combine, draining excess moisture or stir in manually to maintain as much texture as desired.

To assemble, add pasta sauce to the bottom of a small casserole dish (at least as deep as the noodle width) and fill it ~1/3, to serve as a base to hold up the rolls. Lay out the softened noodles, and spread 2 Tbsp of creamy spinach sauce on each noodle and top with the onion & mushroom mixture, being mindful to retain enough for each noodle. Then gently roll each noodle and stand them upright in the casserole dish until all are snuggly packed together. Top with a sprinkling of seasoned bread crumbs and thyme. The sauce should be close to the top of the casserole when finished to keep the noodles moist while baking.

Bake at 400 (deg. Celsius) for 20 minutes, remove and then let stand for 10 min.

Serve 3 rolls with a side salad and enjoy this fun twist on classic flavours!

Side Idea: Try it with this delicious kale caesar salad!