Nicole Maquire’s easy spinach and ricotta lasagne parcels
Love pasta? These spinach and ricotta lasagne parcels from Nicole Maquire’s The Simple Dinner Edit are a quick and easy twist on the classic comfort food.
I love ALL versions of lasagne but not that much on those nights where I don’t have the time or energy to be fussing, layering and dealing with the aftermath of a kitchen sink filled with multiple pots and pans.
With this version, ricotta and spinach are enclosed in lasagne sheets to make little parcels, then topped with store-bought pasta sauce, pesto and cheese.
This recipe is so easy to make yet the flavour payoff is amazing considering it’s made with so little.
It’s perfect for the nights when you need something fast and nothing other than a delicious, homemade lasagne will do.
My mouth is watering just thinking about it!
Ingredients
Lasagne Parcels
- 250 g fresh pasta sheets (see Note)
- 800 g tomato pasta sauce
- 60 g (¼ cup) basil pesto, store-bought or homemade
- 150 g (1 cup) freshly grated mozzarella
- basil leaves, to serve
Spinach and Ricotta Filling
- 500 g frozen spinach, thawed and drained
- 500 g fresh ricotta
- 50 g (½ cup) freshly grated parmesan
- 1 tsp sea salt flakes
- ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
Method
Step 1.
Preheat the oven to 180C fan-forced.
To make the spinach and ricotta filling, in a bowl combine the thawed and drained frozen spinach with the ricotta, parmesan, salt, and pepper.
Step 2.
Place six lasagne sheets on your kitchen bench, then divide the ricotta and spinach mixture across one half of each of the sheets.
Fold each sheet in half to create a parcel, so that the filling is enclosed crossways.
Step 3.
Spoon half a cup of pasta sauce into the bottom of a baking dish.
Top with three lasagne parcels, side by side (it’s okay if they are slightly overlapping) then spoon half of the remaining pasta sauce over them so the lasagne sheets are completely covered.
Dollop tablespoons of the pesto over the top.
Step 4.
Place the remaining three lasagne parcels on top.
Top with the remaining pasta sauce and sprinkle with the mozzarella.
Step 5.
Bake the lasagne, uncovered, for 30 minutes or until golden and cooked through.
Top with the basil leaves and rest for 5 minutes before serving.
You might also like:
- Pasta salad with vegetables and black olives
- Summer Orzo Pasta with Feta and Tomato Salad
- Pappardelle Pasta with Pan-Fried Brussels Sprouts and Lemon
- Sally’s One Pot Pasta
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Edited extract and images from The Simple Dinner Edit by Nicole Maguire, published by Plum, RRP $39.99. Photography by Jeremy Simons. |
