Growing up in Minnesota, you learn that the 9×13 pan is a bit of an institution. Maybe it’s our love of church pot lucks combined with the custom of the “pan of bars” for dessert sprinkled with our defiant use of the term “hot dish” instead of “casserole.”

Whatever it is – the ease of making something delicious and serving it up in one 9×13 pan is totally comforting to me. Plus, it means you always have more than enough to feed friends or stash leftovers.

Earlier this week on Twin Cities Live, I went on a tangent (as one does) about how wonderful the 9×13 pan is and my South Dakota raised co-host thought I was being a bit dramatic. By the way – our guest that day was blogger Lisa Arnason and I ate the entire serving of her One Pan Chicken and Orzo Bake during the commercial break.

This morning on Minnesota Live, I shared my version of one of my childhood favorites: Spinach Lasagna Roll Ups. My mom made these regularly when I was growing up – my only addition is Italian sausage which adds flavor and some protein. This is another 9×13 pan for the win type situation. Enjoy!

Spinach Lasagna Roll Ups

Gather this:

• 1 box lasagna noodles with curled edges (not no-boil noodles – you’ll need 10 noodles total but I always make a few extra in case they tear)
• 1/2 pound bulk Italian sausage
• 5 ounces frozen spinach, thawed and liquid pressed out (half a 10 ounce bag)
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 8-ounce container whole milk ricotta cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 2 cups marinara sauce
• 1 8-ounce block mozzarella or monterey jack cheese, grated

Do this:

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add 2 tbsp salt and the lasagna noodles and cook until very al dente. Do not overcook. Drizzle a jelly roll pan with olive oil and place the noodles on the pan to cool.

Heat a medium sized skillet over medium high heat. Add the Italian sausage and cook through, set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, add the ricotta, spinach, parmesan, egg, pepper and cooled sausage. Stir to combine.

Put 1/2 cup of the marinara sauce on the bottom of a 9×13 pan and spread evenly. Lay out each noodle and spread about 3 tablespoons of the ricotta filling along the length of each noodle. Roll the noodles up and lay seam side down in the 9×13 pan. There should be two filled noodles across the short side of the pan and five total down the long side of the pan.

Pour the rest of the marinara sauce over the top of the noodles then top with the shredded mozzarella cheese.

Cover the pan with foil and bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes. Let stand 5-10 minutes, sprinkle with fresh basil and serve.