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Pasta Rotolo with Spinach and Ricotta
Rotolo di ricotta e spinaci—or ricotta and spinach roll—is a rolled lasagna-like dish that resembles slices of jelly roll. We learned to make it in Rome from Annamaria Moretti, owner of the shop Pasta all’Uovo. The dish typically is prepared with homemade sheets of pasta, but after a bit of trial and error we found we could layer strips of store-bought “oven-ready” lasagna noodles (look for 7-by-3½-inch noodles; we like those made by Barilla and Ronzoni) to create sheets. Though intended to be used dry, we cook them briefly so they soften enough to roll around the cheese and spinach filling. For make-ahead convenience, the rolls can be frozen overnight, then thawed for 10 minutes until soft enough to slice and bake. (If freezing overnight, be sure to also refrigerate the reserved pasta water that’s added to the tomatoes for making the sauce.)
6 to 8
Servings
Tip
Don’t allow the water to return to a boil after adding the lasagna noodles or they may tear. Immediately turn the heat to low. And be sure to stir as they soften, which will prevent them from sticking together. An 8- or 9-ounce box will include more noodles than are needed for the recipe, so you will have a few extra noodles in case a few break or tear.
3½ hours
1½ hours active
Ingredients
-
1
pound bag frozen chopped spinach, thawed
-
2
15- or 16-ounce containers whole-milk ricotta cheese
Directions
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01Wrap the spinach in a kitchen towel and squeeze to wring out as much moisture as possible. Put half of the spinach in a food processor; set the rest aside. Drain the ricotta in a large mesh strainer, stirring with a silicone spatula to remove as much liquid as possible.
Reviews
July 27, 2026
Room for personalization
Honestly, I did not follow the directions exactly, and I made my own sauce with fresh tomatoes and summer squash; to simplify, you could just use any sauce that you enjoy including meat sauce.
The way I created the rolls was a little different, but the key here is in the filling. It's amazing, and worth the effort of this dish. I used a fresh basket ricotta and fresh spinach. I didn't squeeze either.
I used a grated mozzarella in stead of fontina because I had it in the fridge (like the spinach). The pasta sheets suggested here are fantastic; thin but durable. Easy to use. And when curled around the cheesy filling it creates a rich, creamy mouthful topped with a bright tomato sauce. So, use what you have, there's room for substitution to make it your own.
June 10, 2025
Simply delicious!
This was definitely a weekend recipe! I put this altogether on Sunday and fed my co-workers on Monday. They all loved it. I got my Backroads Italy cookbook and this was the first recipe that caught my eye. So happy I made it! This is one of the most beautiful cookbooks in my collection! Even bought one for my niece for her birthday. She loves it also!
March 1, 2025
Delicious with some minor changes
I had this dish at an Italian restaurant and thought it was delicious. This turned out as good as what I had at the restaurant. I did a couple things a little different. After rinsing the pasta, I gently separated each pasta sheet and keep them separate while I was assembling this. Also, it would have been really crowded to try to fit these into one 9 x 13 baking dish, I doubled the sauce and used two 9 x 13 baking dishes. I also added some additional spices, such as oregano, along with some tomato paste.
May 16, 2024
Nice variation of lasagna
These look complicated and fidly to make - but were surprisingly easy and very tasty. I had enough filling and pasta sheets for 6 rolls - so froze one to make later as a solo meal (couldn't fit any more into my 9x13 baking pan). The filling and pasta sauce were both really good and leftovers were great the next evening. I will definitely make this recipe again.
May 14, 2024
Amazing dish...worth the extra work
I used fresh spinach and my homemade ricotta. I squeezed them in a clean tea towel to remove maximum water. I then softened the pasta sheets in the spinach water and the sauce is the best!
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