Wild Mushroom Lasagna Rollups Gone Wrong

Today was a series of dinner mishaps that led to one large pan of reasonably yummy lasagna. To begin, I had decided to pull a pan of Wild Mushroom Lasagna Roll ups from the freezer because my in-laws were coming to town and it's an impressive dish. Unfortunately, while checking the thawing status I realized that  the pan I pulled was actually tater tot casserole. That won't do for a fussy in-law dinner, so I ran to the store and grabbed the ingredients to make some roll-ups. Well of course, this had to be one of the crazy busiest days I have had in a long time. I decided to boil the noodles and leave them in the water while I ran to do the elementary school pickup. I came home and mixed up the cheese filling and the mushroom filling.

The mushroom filling didn't look like it was going to be substantial enough to fill 16 rolls

So I added some seasoned lean ground beef

Yes, that is a potato masher in the cheese filling. It really is the best tool for this job.

The first noodle tore a bit when I pulled it out of the water, but I managed to spread a layer of cheese.

Then a layer of mushroom filling

And rolled it up.

Then next noodle was not as willing to come out of the water. The pot of noodles had turned into a big mass of lasagna  knots. I ended up unrolling my noodles and just trying to layer them like a regular lasagna. I figured that if I threw enough cheese on the top it would cover the top and glue the dish together. This was a relatively good plan and it work out pretty well and the dish looked good.

The next problem was the taste. In my efforts to be health conscious and reduce the fat of the dish, I eliminated the flavor. Ugh seriously yesterday was not my day!  But I am going to try to turn this into a learning experience and I have come up with some ideas on how to perk up this bland dish and still keep it healthy. My changes from the original are in red. If you have any suggestions let me know!

Wild Mushroom, Lasagna Roll-Ups


• 16  lasagna noodles
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 ounces sliced baby portabella Mushroom
• 4 ounces slice shitake or other wild mushroom
• ½ onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1/2 pound lean ground beef
1/3 cup Red Wine
• 1 pint fat free ricotta cheese
• 4 ounces fat free cream cheese
1/4 cup Grated Parmesan
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 4 large leaves fresh basil
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• Fresh ground pepper
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¾ cup grated mozzarella cheese

Cook lasagna noodles according to package directions, drain and rinse to cool.
Meanwhile, in a heavy skillet, heat olive oil. Sauté onions, garlic and mushrooms 5 minutes.
In a medium bowl, blend together ricotta, Cream cheese, egg, basil, oregano, pepper and salt.
One noodle at a time, spread a layer of cheese and then a light layer of mushroom/onion mixture.
Roll up noodle, place in baking pan.
Once all rolls are filled, top with remaining ricotta mixture and sprinkle with mozzarella.
Cover in aluminum foil and freeze.

Thaw Completely - Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Bake for one hour or until cheese is melted and golden brown. Makes 16 rolls.