Hidden Veggie Lasagna Roll Ups

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These hidden veggie lasagna roll ups are made with my special hidden veggie pasta sauce, which incorporates six veggies for extra nutrients! Each lasagna noodle is topped with savory meat sauce and ricotta cheese mixture, then rolled like a pinwheel before baking. The kids love making these for family dinners, but they’re also so easy to pack up for healthy lunches later in the week!

A fork digging into a hidden veggie lasagna roll up on a polka dot plate.

Kid-Friendly Lasagna Roll Ups with Cottage Cheese

As a Registered Dietitian and mom, I know how hard it can be to find balanced and healthy meals the whole family will eat. Lasagna is a classic, but most recipes are very rich and heavy and not always the most nutrient-dense option.

We’ve taken lasagna to a whole new level with these hidden veggie lasagna roll ups! My kids love this easy vegetable lasagna, and I love knowing that they’re getting extra fiber, and other nutrients at the same time!

Plus, this great recipe can be cooked up faster than traditional lasagna, too!

If your kids are into noodles, they’ll also love this homemade Beef Pasta Hamburger Helper!

A close-up of the hidden veggie lasagna roll ups after baking.

Why We Love This Recipe

Loaded with veggies, but no one will ever guess!
Faster and easier to make than traditional lasagna
Packed with protein thanks to two types of meat and three cheeses
Contains extra fiber from the whole wheat pasta and hidden veggies
Pre-portioned into individual servings for easy serving and meal prep
Can be frozen for easy freezer meal prep (great for new parents)

Ingredient Notes

Ingredients required to make hidden veggie lasagna roll ups recipe with labels.

Whole wheat lasagna noodles: For extra fiber, choose whole wheat noodles or a fiber-enriched option.
Ground Italian sausage: This adds a ton of extra flavor. I used ground turkey Italian sausage to make it a little lower in fat.
Extra lean ground beef: To bulk up the meat sauce and add extra protein.
Diced onion & garlic
Hidden veggie pasta sauce: My homemade marinara sauce has six different types of veggies all blended into a smooth and creamy sauce! Perfect for picky eaters. If you don’t have time to make the sauce, you can easily sub in canned tomato sauce.
Chopped spinach: Either fresh or frozen will do.
Beef broth: Reduced sodium is best, especially for babies and toddlers.
Seasonings: You just need a little Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
Egg: For the cheesy filling.
Cheeses: For this comforting lazy lasagna casserole, you’ll need an assortment of cheeses: grated mozzarella, ricotta, and cottage cheese.
Chopped parsley: As an optional garnish.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Lasagna noodles being boiled in a large pot.

A large pot of hidden veggie pasta sauce.

Boil lasagna sheets according to package instructions until al dente. Drain and separate lasagna sheets on a baking sheet or parchment paper. Set aside for later.
In a large skillet over medium heat, add ground sausage, ground beef and chopped onion. Cook, stirring occasionally until sausage is cooked through and onions are tender, about 4-5 minutes. Add minced garlic in the last minute. Next, add pasta sauce, broth and Italian seasoning. Stir to combine and allow it to simmer over low heat for about 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat when done and let cool slightly.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium bowl, mix together ricotta cheese, cottage cheese, chopped spinach,1 cup mozzarella cheese, ¼ cup parmesan cheese, egg, salt (if using) and pepper.
Spread about ¼ of the meat sauce to cover the bottom of your baking dish.
Make the lasagna roll ups by laying out each sheet of lasagna on a flat surface and spreading about 2 tablespoons of the ricotta mixture onto each sheet. Top the ricotta mixture with about 3-4 tablespoons of meat sauce. Roll lasagna sheet up and place in baking dish with the seam facing down. Repeat with all 12 rolls.
Add any remaining meat sauce on top of the rolls, spreading it over the edges of the rolls as well to prevent them from drying out. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
Cover dish with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Carefully remove foil and let cook another 5 minutes.
Remove lasagna roll ups from oven and let cool for a few minutes before serving. Garnish with finely chopped parsley, if desired. Enjoy!

A forkful of hidden veggie lasagna roll up with spinach.

Keep scrolling to the recipe card below for the full printable recipe!

RECIPE TIPS

I highly recommend making the hidden veggie pasta sauce ahead of time so that you can just dump it in with the meat sauce.
If you don’t have time to make the veggie pasta sauce, you can easily sub in a couple of cans of tomato sauce. The flavor is definitely better with the homemade pasta sauce though!
This recipe takes some extra time to prepare, but it makes quite a few servings, so you can eat the leftovers throughout the week or freeze half for later!

Recipe FAQs

Can toddlers have lasagna?

Yes, babies and toddlers can certainly enjoy lasagna with the whole family, but keep in mind that classic lasagna is generally very high in calories and fat and may contain quite a bit of salt. It’s a notoriously rich dish that may be too much for young kids. I recommend using a lower-fat, low-sodium, and toddler-friendly recipe with extra veggies and fiber to bring down the overall calories. This delicious veggie lasagna with spinach and meat is dietitian-formulated to be more balanced and it will also be easier for your little ones to digest.

How long to cook lasagna roll ups?

Lasagna roll ups bake much faster than regular lasagna! Start by covering the lasagna with foil and baking at 350 F for 35 minutes. At the end, remove the foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes or until the cheese melts and turns golden brown.

Can you freeze lasagna roll ups?

Yes! You can freeze the entire unbaked lasagna for an easy meal later on. Prepare the whole dish like normal, then wrap it in several layers of foil and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before baking like normal the next day. The lasagna sheets are often a little softer when you freeze the lasagna first, but it works really well!

Storage Guidelines

Store any leftover vegetable lasagna in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Leftovers can be frozen in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. You can also freeze the entire unbaked lasagna following the instructions above for easy meal prep.

A kid-friendly lasagna roll up on a decorative plate.

Serving Suggestions

This hidden vegetable lasagna recipe is a complete meal on its own! It has plenty of protein, fats, and carbohydrates to fuel your kids up.

I do generally recommend serving it with extra vegetables on the side, like a side salad, green beans, roasted broccoli, or even raw veggies and dip. This will still expose your kids to veggies in their natural form (which I recommend) and give your kids even more fiber to keep them full for hours!

Recipe Variations

Add more veggies: If you use my veggie marinara, you’ll already be adding extra veggies, but you can certainly add more! Finely chop bell peppers, onion, carrots, etc. to cook down with the sauce before rolling up each noodle.
Vegetarian lasagna roll-ups: For a meat-free entree, ditch the ground beef and sausage and either cook down extra veggies or add plant-based crumbles or lentils for a meaty texture.
Make a white sauce: If you prefer to use a white bechamel sauce instead of ricotta in your lasagna, try this healthier white sauce. It will spill out of the roll-ups and be a little messy, but it will still taste amazing.

Hidden veggie lasagna roll ups after baking.

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