My Lasagna Roll Ups recipe takes the best of classic Lasagna but makes it easier to serve, faster to bake, and ready to serve right away – no resting time required! They are make-ahead, freezer-friendly, and reheat well for an easy weeknight meal or meal prep idea.
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Helpful Reader Review
“I was so surprised how easy this recipe was to make and how fast it was to prepare. My husband asked me to make sure I put this recipe in our rotation of easy and quick meals to make. It was so satisfying to see the end result be so gratifying. Thanks Natasha – huge fan!!!” – Brandi ★★★★★
Watch My Lasagna Rolls Video
We love comforting pasta dishes like Chicken Tetrazzini, traditional Spaghetti and Meatballs, and Baked Mac and Cheese; in fact, these are among the most requested meals in our family. Try this Lasagna Roll-Ups recipe and you will make it over and over. Double the recipe and stash one tray in the freezer for an easy and delicious meal that’s ready to cook from frozen!
Best Lasagna Roll-Ups Recipe
These Lasagna Roll-ups have all the elements of Classic Lasagna – beefy, saucy, cheesy, and definitely satisfy the craving for lasagna, but they are way easier to serve. No more messy lasagna squares sliding apart as you struggle to remove them from the pan.
This easy dish keeps well in the fridge or freezer for the perfect meal-prep or make-ahead dinner, so be sure to double the recipe for two nights of lasagna goodness. P.S. If you make my Spaghetti Sauce, you can use leftovers for these Lasagna Roll Ups.
Ingredients for Lasagna Roll Ups
The ingredients for lasagna roll ups are nearly the same as classic lasagna, so you know it will taste good.
- Lasagna noodles – Go with plain lasagna noodles, not the no-boil variety, so they hold their shape once cooked. You can even make your own pasta.
- Ground Beef – using 1lb of 80/20 or 85/15 works best for flavor without being too greasy, but you can swap for Italian sausage or use ground turkey or ground chicken for a leaner lasagna.
- Marinara – make this quick homemade Marinara Sauce or use a jar of store-bought
- Aromatics – diced onion, garlic cloves, salt, pepper, and oregano.
- Cheeses – we make a 3-cheese sauce with ricotta cheese (use whole milk so it’s not too liquidy), Parmesan cheese, and shredded mozzarella.
- Egg – this binds the filling together, but you can omit it if needed.
- Fresh Parsley – chopped, or 2 Tablespoons dried parsley.
How to Make Lasagna Rolls
This lasagna roll ups recipe results in 12 perfectly portioned servings of lasagna, so it’s brilliant for parties!
- Cook the noodles in salted water until just al dente (don’t overcook), as they will continue cooking in the oven. I always make a few extra noodles in case they break when cooking. Drain, and cover in cool water.
- Ragu Meat sauce – brown the beef, and then add the onion, garlic, salt, pepper, and oregano. Then stir in the marinara. Spread 1/2 cup in a 9×13 casserole.
- Cheese sauce – combine the ricotta, egg, 1/4 cup of Parmesan, 1/2 cup of mozzarella, and 1/4 cup of fresh chopped parsley.
- Roll – Lay out the cooked noodles, and then spread cheese sauce and meat sauce on each. Roll up and place seam-side down in the dish.
- Top the rolls with the remaining meat sauce and mozzarella.
- Bake – Cover and bake at 375°F for 40 minutes. Uncover to broil for 2 minutes, garnish with parsley, and serve.
How to know when Lasagna Rolls Ups are Done?
When the lasagna roll ups are finished baking, they will be bubbling, and the cheese will be melty on top from the short broil.
What to Serve with Lasagna Roll Ups
My lasagna roll ups recipe is filling and satisfying with plenty of protein, flavor, and melty cheese, so I love to serve this with a simple Italian salad and crusty bread to sop up every drop of the Ragu sauce, and don’t forget dessert! Here are a few of our favorite recipes:
- Caesar Salad
- Panzanella Salad
- Tomato Burrata Salad
- Easy Garlic Bread
- Focaccia Bread
- Panna Cotta
- Tiramisu
Make-Ahead and Storage
My lasagna roll-ups recipe is perfect for making ahead to share with others or to have a meal ready anytime.
- Make-ahead: Cool the baked casserole to room temperature, cover and store, or you can cover tightly with foil and store before baking in the refrigerator overnight or in the freezer for 3 months. Bake from the fridge for 50 minutes or from the freezer for an hour.
- To Refrigerate: Cover cooled leftover rolls and store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Freezing: Cover the cooled leftover roll ups or transfer to an airtight container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw cooked leftovers in the freezer overnight.
- To Reheat: Cut a portion to heat in the microwave until warm, or reheat covered in the oven until heated through.
My super-easy Lasagna Roll Ups recipe has all the melty, savory, satisfying flavors of classic lasagna in a single portion size. You’ll love how easy it is to serve, but it also reheats well for a perfect make-ahead dinner. You’ll love these leftovers!
Lasagna Roll Ups
Ingredients
- 12 lasagna noodles, *cooked to package instructions
- 16 oz ground beef, 85% lean
- 24 oz marinara sauce
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp sea salt, or to taste for red sauce
- 1/2 tsp black pepper, or to taste
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 15 oz ricotta cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
- 3 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded, divided
- 1/4 cup parsley, chopped, plus more to garnish
Instructions
- Cook the noodles – Preheat oven to 375˚F. Cook noodles in a large pot of salted water according to package instructions for al dente (don't overcook), then drain and fill pot with cold water to stop the cooking process and keep noodles from sticking together.
- Meat Sauce – In a deep pan or Dutch oven, over medium-high heat, cook ground beef until no longer pink, breaking up with a spatula (2 min). Add onion and cook until softened (3 minutes). Add garlic, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, and 1/2 tsp oregano and sauté another minute. Add marinara, bring to a simmer, and turn off the heat. Spread 1/2 cup meat sauce over the bottom of a casserole dish.
- Cheese Sauce – In a large bowl, stir together: ricotta, 1 egg, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, and 1/4 cup parsley.
- Roll – To contain messiness, arrange noodles over a large baking sheet in a single layer. Spread 1/4 cup (1 scant ice cream scoop) of cheese mixture over the top of each noodle. Add a heaping Tbsp of meat sauce in a strip down the center of the noodle. Roll noodles up and arrange in the prepared casserole dish.
- Top – Spread remaining meat sauce over the tops of roll-ups and sprinkle on the remaining 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil, making sure foil isn't touching cheese (if your pan is on the shallow side, you can put toothpicks into rolls to keep the foil away from cheese.
- Bake covered at 375˚F for 40 minutes. Remove foil and broil another 2-3 minutes or until cheese is lightly golden. Garnish with parsley to serve.
Notes
- Make ahead – either store baked and cooled casserole covered in the fridge or the freezer for up to 3 months; or store covered before baking overnight in the fridge or for up to 3 months in the freezer. Bake uncooked rollups directly from the refrigerator or from the freezer.
- Refrigerator – store cooked and cooled roll ups in the fridge, covered with foil, for up to 4 days.
- Freezer – Cool leftovers and store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
- Reheat – take out a roll or two and reheat in the microwave until warm, or put casserole dish back in the oven at 350°F until warmed through.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
More Lasagna Recipes
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- Italian Lasagna
- Chicken Lasagna
- Slow Cooker Lasagna
- Lasagna Soup
- Bonus: Chocolate Lasagna
could you add a layer of fresh spinach to each roll up before putting them in the oven?
Hi Shelley, I think that will be okay. If you try that, please share with us how it goes.
These were amazing, just loved them. I do have lots leftover though, would it be still good to freeze the leftovers?
Hi Christine, that will be okay. This is freezer friendly so it will still be delicious if you reheat it!
This is absolutely wonderful! I didn’t change a thing. Your video was very helpful, thank you. I can’t wait to make it for my grandkids this summer.
I’m so glad it was helpful, Candy! Thank you for that great review!
We love the lasagna roll ups. Made two dishes, one for us and one fir the freezer for later.
Great to hear that you all loved the recipe, Shirley!
I was wondering if this is a lot more pasta per meat/cheese ratio than traditional layers.
Hi Joe, we believe we found the perfect balance with this recipe. I hope you try it and love it soon!
I have been using your recipe to create meals for Lasagna Love.org. We love lasagna rolls vs traditional because it’s so much easier to serve.
So glad to hear that Alicia. Thank you for sharing.
Love this recipe Natasha, its so much easier than making standard lasagne. I made this today, I live in Scotland and we don’t generally use the ricotta mixture, instead we make out lasagne with Bechamel Sauce. It worked out great, although the sauce wasn’t as thick but boy did it taste good. Thanks Natasha
Glad that turned out great too, Dee!
This is a great idea! I am going to try this for dinner tonight. How do you recommend freezing left overs and reheating?
Hi Christina, Yes, you can freeze this. I recommend checking this section in the recipe “Can I Make Lasagna Roll-Ups Ahead?”
I made this for dinner the other day and it was amazing! The recipe is easy to follow and I followed it to a T and also cut the boiled lasagna noodles in half so there would be more roll ups. It was a hit in the house and so much fun to make! It was a bit time consuming with putting the cheese and meat sauce in the middle of the lasagna noodles and rolling them up but it is definitely quicker than making a regular lasagna! Spraying your foil with cooking spray also helps the cheese not stick to the pan along with putting in a few toothpicks in the dish. This recipe is a keeper!
Hi Kayla! I’m so happy to hear it was a hit! Thank you so much for sharing that with me!
To prevent cheese from sticking, spray tin foil with cooking spray. Works well.
Great idea! Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
Oh My! Delicious Your receipes never disappoint I will say you make it look so easy, I made a terrible mess, but the end result was so YUMMY
I’m so glad it turned out yummy, Ellen!
Natasha, you’ve done it again. Awesome recipe and so easy to make. Great twist on lasagna. Even Garfield was happy at our house with this one.
I always add a little basil, rosemary and Parmesan to my sauce for more flavor. Give it a try.
That’s a great addition to the recipe, Andrea. Thank you for sharing that with us!
How could I do these using oven ready lasagna? It’s all I have
Hi Barbara, I haven’t tested this with oven-ready lasagna, but here’s what one of my readers wrote: “I haven’t tried using the oven-ready ones but I did find a recipe online where they used oven-ready but still boiled them to soften so you could roll them up, which defeats the purpose of buying no boil.” I hope that helps.
Hi,
I love your recipes!
Can you please let me know what the serving size is?
Thank you!
Hi Jessica, The serving size can be found at the beginning of the print-friendly recipe card (located at the bottom of the recipe post). The nutrition label shows counts “per serving.” Hope that helps!
Hi,
Just wanted to know if I can make the lasagna without the ricotta cheese or maybe there is something else I can possible use?
Thank You!
I haven’t tried only cottage cheese but I think the texture would be changed a little bit in the sauce. The ricotta blends better.
You can replace the ricotta mixture with a Bechamel Sauce (white sauce) and add whatever cheese you like, its not as thick but thats what we use in the UK. Its a Northern/Southern Italy type of debate.
You can use cottage cheese…just put it in a blender. comes out delish.
Hi Natasha-made the lasagna rolls today and loved the results. At what temperature in conventional oven should I reheat? How long? Appreciate your response.
Hi Pat, you can reheat portions in the microwave or oven until roll-ups are heated through and the cheese is melted.
Do you use white or yellow onions for this recipe? What is the difference between the two?
Hi Mary, I use white but any will actually be okay.
Oh so good! My husband who does not like pasta devoured these. I will be making these over and over. Natasha, you are the best! I love every one of your recipes. Thinking and praying for our families in the Ukraine. My Mom was born in Zaparozhia and had to flee during WW11. Praying for your family.
That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite, Jenny! Thank you for your prayers, Jenny!
Natasha, I have made many of your recipes and loved all of them. Can I use ready cooked lasagna noodles?
Hi Diane, I haven’t tested, but it may work, you will likely need to add them a bit later so they don’t overcook.
My son loves this (beef and italian sausage ) lasagna recipe! I’m planning to make this for his birthday! Since we can’t celebrate with family/ friends I was thinking of using foil pans (8×4) with 3-4 lasagna roll ups each pan to give away for friends/family. What do
You think? Thanks again!
I think that’s an excellent idea! I hope everyone loves it.