These are a vegetarian alternative to sausage rolls and very tasty: even confirmed carnivores love them. So if you’ve got a mixture of veggies and meat-eaters to feed these are a good solution. With a few salads they make a good lunch or supper; alone they’re ideal snacks, picnic food or lunchbox fillers.
Make them as big or small as you like: I got seven rolls out of one sheet of pastry and the filling below. You can reduce the quantity of ricotta to 250g or add a little more spinach if you like – I was using up what I had in the fridge. I managed to cram in the maximum amount (no surprise there) but a friend who made this said she had leftover filling.
Spinach and Ricotta Rolls
Ingredients:
250-350g ricotta
60g parmesan, grated
240g baby spinach
1 onion, finely chopped
A knob of butter
A handful of toasted pine nuts (optional)
Grating of nutmeg
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 sheet of ready-rolled puff pastry, preferably all-butter
Beaten egg, to glaze
Black onion seeds or sesame seeds, for decoration (optional)
Method:
Pre-heat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6.
Melt the butter in a deep frying pan and cook the chopped onion until soft and golden. Remove and set aside. Wilt the spinach in the same pan then place in a sieve. When it’s cool, squeeze out as much liquid as possible, then chop finely.
In a bowl, mix the ricotta and parmesan, then add the spinach, onions, and pine nuts, if using. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and add a good grating of nutmeg. Stir to mix.
Unroll the pastry and cut into sections, depending on how big and fat you want your rolls to be. Lay a quantity of the filling in the middle of each section, brush the long edge with beaten egg and roll to seal.
Pinch the ends so the filling doesn’t spill out during cooking, place seam-side-down on a lightly oiled baking sheet and slash them a couple of time across the top to let the steam out.
Brush with beaten egg, scatter with onion seeds or sesame seeds if using, and bake for about 25 minutes or until the pastry is risen and golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before carefully moving to a wire rack.
Eat warm or cold but if you refrigerate them let them come to room temperature before serving. They can be gently re-heated in a warm oven. They also freeze well.
Looks fantastic, definitely going to make these!! What a good alternative to sausage rolls!
Thanks, Rob. Inspired by our visit to that deli near you!
Stop it! I can’t keep on having Mrs. Portly moments!
Is that like having a senior moment? 😀
🙂
Mouth is watering 🙂
I have to say, without undue modesty, they turned out very well! Thanks. Lx
These look delicious! Thomas the Baker (think they are a Yorkshire chain?) due a rather nice Spinach Florentine pasty but yours look in a different league.
Apologies, that should say ‘do’ and not ‘due’!
Thanks, Penny! I haven’t come across that chain so I assume they are indeed local to you. Mine look a bit rustic but they taste jolly good, if I say so myself.
Those look so good! Great to have something for vegetarians that carnivores will also appreciate!
Isn’t it? Everyone’s happy, especially the cook! Thanks and have a great week.
This is a ravioli filling inside puff pastry. Oh, baby! This does sound really good, Linda, and I won’t be missing the meat. I’ll toss a couple of sausages on the plate. 😀
Do you know, it hadn’t occurred to me that’s what I’d done but you’re absolutely right. Think of them as crisp, buttery, giant, oven-cooked ravioli. 🙂 Sausages … hmmmn … now I want to make sausage rolls with Italian fennel sausage ….
Oo such a good idea! Love spinach and ricotta with pasta so I bet this is fabulous. You clever lady x
Thank you. I’m thinking maybe plaits next time. 🙂