Lasagna Rolls

I am a lasagna purist, so it took me a long time to get on the lasagna roll bandwagon.  The concept has been around for a while, but since lasagna is one of my favorite foods, I thought my way was better.  Well... I might have been wrong.  These are so good!  And if you want to put them in multiple dishes to freeze, pass off to a friend etc, it is very convenient!

Meat Sauce:

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 a 32 oz. jar of sauce (save the rest for the bottom and top)

Ricotta Filling:

• 2 cups ricotta cheese (or a 15 ounce container)
• 1 large egg
• 2 teaspoons of pesto
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley ( I only had dried)
• 8 ounces mozzarella cheese shredded, about 2 cups (reserving 1/2 cup for topping)
• 4 ounces Parmesan cheese finely grated, about 1 1/2 - 2 cups (reserving 1/4 cup for topping)
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Noodles:

• 12 traditional lasagna noodles (I had enough filling for 15)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking pan and set aside.
2. Brown the ground beef and drain any excess grease.
3. Add half of the jar of sauce and simmer to combine the flavors.
4. While the sauce is simmering, boil the lasagna noodles in a large pot of salted water according to package directions until al dente. Drain the noodles, rinse quickly under cold water and then lay the noodles flat in a single layer on waxed paper, towel, cutting board, whatever is handy.
5. Stir together the ricotta cheese, egg, pesto, parsley, mozzarella cheese (remember to set aside 1/2 cup of the mozzarella for topping later), Parmesan cheese (remember to set aside 1/4 cup of the Parmesan for later also), salt and pepper.
6. Spread a heaping spoonful of the ricotta filling down the center of each noodle. It doesn't have to cover the entire noodle, just press it into a somewhat even layer. The filling will be divided up evenly over all 12 noodle (I don't start rolling up the noodles until I've used up all the filling so I can add more to each noodle if need be). Spread a tablespoon or two of the meat sauce down the center of each noodle on top of the creamy filling. Again, it doesn't need to be perfectly even, just drizzle/spread it across the top.
7. Spread about one cup or so of the sauce in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Working with one lasagna noodle at a time, roll the noodle and place seam-side down in the baking dish in four rows of three. Spread the remaining sauce over the noodles, sprinkle with the reserved cheeses and cover with aluminum foil  Bake, covered for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Let the lasagna rolls rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Kitchen of Reality Tips:

- I used a jarred sauce by Mid's called Meatless (Lowe's Foods) and it was the best sauce I have ever tasted!  It is quite expensive so I only bought it because it was on a great sale.  In the future, I will be sure to stock up because it was awesome!

- I got all my other ingredients at Aldi, so you can keep the price pretty low!

Pizza Bake

Easy and had all the ingredients in the pantry to make it. Just something different from a plain old boring pizza. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 lb Italian sausage
- 1 med onion, chopped
- 1 bell pepper, chopped
- 15 ounce jar pizza sauce
- 1/2 tsp garlic salt
- 1/4 cup fresh oregano
- 1/2 C parmesan cheese
- 8 ounces mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup milk
- 2 eggs
- 1 T oil

Directions
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Brown hamburger, sausage, onion, and bell pepper. Drain well.
- Add garlic salt and oregano, pizza sauce. Stir well.
- Grease a 9x13 inch pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle mozzarella over bottom of it. Spread meat mixture over the cheese.
- In mixing bowl, add eggs, milk, flour, oil, and salt. Pour over meat in pan.
- Sprinkle parmesan cheese over batter.
-Bake 30 minutes.
Tips from a Kitchen Reality:
- I ended up using only about 1 lb of meat total.
- I didn’t use onions and peppers—replaced with mushrooms—and used a lot. (Replace with your favorite pizza toppings.)
- Didn’t use fresh oregano—replaced with a few Tbsp Italian Seasoning.
- Mine wasn’t quite done at 30 minutes—I think it baked 40 instead.

Chicken Rollatini with Spinach

I always am up for a recipe that is tasty and good for you.
The recipe claims to be 5 WW points per serving for anyone counting!
It was DELICIOUS (dare I say it, very moist... I can't stand that word) and super easy, especially since I had all the ingredients at home to make it.

Ingredients:
8 thin chicken cutlets, 3 oz each
1/2 cup whole wheat Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided
6 tablespoons egg whites or egg beaters
5 oz frozen spinach, squeezed dry of any liquid
6 tbsp part skim ricotta cheese
6 oz part skim mozzarella
olive oil non-stick spray
1 cup of your favorite marinara sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
- Wash and dry chicken, season with salt and pepper.  Preheat oven to 450°. Lightly spray a baking dish with non-stick spray.
- Combine breadcrumbs and 2 tbsp parmesan cheese in one bowl and 1/4 cup egg beaters or egg whites in another.
- Shred or finely chop 1.5 oz of mozzarella cheese and combine with remaining parmesan cheese, spinach (make sure you squeeze it dry), 2 tbsp egg beaters, and ricotta cheese.
- Lay chicken down on a working surface and spread 2 tbsp of spinach-cheese mixture on each cutlet. Loosely roll each one and keep seam side down.
- Dip chicken in egg mixture, then in breadcrumbs and place seam side down in a baking dish (no toothpicks -needed). Repeat with the remaining chicken. \
- When finished, lightly spray with olive oil and cover with foil. Bake 25 mins. Remove foil, top with sauce and cheese. Bake 4 more minutes until cheese is melted.

Tips from a Kitchen of Reality:
I actually ALMOST followed the recipe, I substituted Italian (non healthy) breadcrumbs for the other, it was what was in the pantry. I also love garlic so I added a tsp of minced garlic to the cheese/spinach mixture.

**Recipe from www.skinnytaste.com . **