The ricotta and spinach crepes rolls are a simple and tasty vegetarian first course to bake in the oven: perfect if you have many guests, because you can prepare them in advance and gratin them in the oven just at the last moment. Soft and with a delicate filling, the ricotta and spinach crepes are a dish that, with little effort and little expense, will allow you to make a good impression even during the upcoming Christmas holidays.
To prepare the ricotta and spinach crepes rolls you can use fresh spinach, which should be briefly cooked in the pan without adding water, or frozen spinach: in this case, you will obviously need to boil them, but it is important to squeeze them very well to eliminate most of the water, otherwise, they will release it during cooking. If you love stuffed crepes and oven-baked first courses, these ricotta and spinach crepes rolls will quickly become one of your favorite dishes!
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Very economical
- Rest time: 1 Hour
- Preparation time: 1 Hour
- Portions: 4 servings
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, and Spring
Ingredients for 12 Ricotta and Spinach Crepes
If you are celiac, you can prepare crepes with rice flour using this recipe and the béchamel using this recipe.
- 12 crepes
- 2.2 lbs Spinach
- 17.6 oz Ricotta (cow or sheep)
- 1.4 oz Parmigiano Reggiano DOP (grated)
- 2 tbsps Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pinch Salt
- to taste Pepper
- to taste Nutmeg
- 1.7 cups béchamel
- 0.7 oz Parmigiano Reggiano DOP (grated)
Tools
- 1 Baking Dish 11.8 x 7.9 inches
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Pot
- 1 Wooden Spoon
- 1 Knife
- 1 Chopping Board
How to Prepare Ricotta and Spinach Crepes Rolls
To prepare the ricotta and spinach crepes rolls, start by preparing the spinach: if you use frozen spinach, boil them for 2-3 minutes in slightly salted boiling water, drain them, and let them cool. If you use fresh spinach, wash them thoroughly under running water and remove the thicker stems and damaged leaves. Drain them well. In a large pan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil (1), then add the spinach and a pinch of salt (2). Cover with a lid and let the spinach wilt over low heat for about 5 minutes (3). For 2.2 lbs of spinach, you will need a very large pan; I preferred to cook them in 2 batches.
When they are tender, turn off the heat (4). Whether you used fresh or frozen spinach, once cooked, place them in a colander and squeeze them well with the back of a spoon (5). When they are lukewarm, take a handful at a time and squeeze them with your hands to remove the cooking water. Then place them on a chopping board and coarsely chop them (6).
Place the ricotta in a bowl and season it with a pinch of salt, a grind of pepper, and a good grating of nutmeg (7). Briefly work it with a wooden spoon, then add the parmigiano (8) and mix it in well (9).
Also add the spinach and mix well until you get a homogeneous and rather firm mixture (10). Then proceed to fill the crepes: Place a crepe on a sheet of foil and spread a little filling on top (11). Do not overdo it, or you will have trouble rolling it. Place a second crepe next to it, slightly overlapping the first (12).
Fill this one too with the spinach mixture. Roll the two crepes starting from the shortest side (13) and pressing firmly to seal them. Form a roll (14) and wrap it in the foil (15). Repeat these operations forming a total of 6 rolls and let them rest in the fridge for at least an hour. This will make it easier to cut them to form the ricotta and spinach crepes rolls.
Meanwhile, prepare the béchamel sauce (16). HERE you can find the classic gluten-free recipe, HERE the one without butter, and HERE the one with microwave cooking. After the resting time, take the crepe rolls out, remove the foil, and cut them into slices about 1.2-1.6 inches thick (17). Lightly coat the bottom of a high-sided baking dish with a little béchamel (18).
Place the ricotta and spinach crepes rolls side by side without overlapping them (19). Top with the remaining béchamel and a little parmigiano (20). Bake the ricotta and spinach crepes rolls in a preheated oven at 356°F (static) for 25-30 minutes or until the surface is well gratinated (21).
Serve the ricotta and spinach crepes rolls immediately.
Storage
Once cooked, you can store the spinach crepes in the refrigerator for 2 days. If you want to freeze them uncooked, you can then bake them in the oven still frozen, extending the cooking time by 15-20 minutes.
If you are looking for more ideas for oven-baked first courses, you can find many HERE!
