If you are gearing up for Easter or planning unrelated food-themed gatherings with family and / or friends soon, my today’s recipe for spinach and ricotta rolls might come in handy. These spinach and ricotta rolls are easy to make and guaranteed to please even the fussiest of customers.
Their creamy filling is inspired by the Spring flavours of spanakopita (recipe here and here) with some chickpeas thrown in for good measure and to add a bit of texture. This lemony and herby (I used fill and parsley) filling gets wrapped in a flaky puff pastry and baked to perfection.
These spinach and ricotta rolls make for a perfect starter or snack, but they could also stretch to a main meal if you wanna get a bit creative. I would recommend serving two per person, accompanied by a trio of seasonal salads and perhaps a dip or two. They come together easily and I hope they will put a smile on your face if you decide to give them a try.
MORE ABOUT THE INGREDIENTS
SPINACH: Spinach is an essential component of the filling for these spinach and ricotta rolls. I use baby spinach, but you could use mature spinach too. Once thing I would perhaps recommend is cutting the stalks off as they can be quite fibrous. You can also use other dark green leafy vegetables such as kale or spring greens. Their blanching time may be different so please look it up if you do decide to make the swap.
CASHEWS: If treated right, raw cashews are excellent at mimicking the texture of dairy ricotta. The key thing here is to soak them really well, ideally overnight and to use a food processor rather than a blender so that you can use as little liquids as possible. If you cannot have cashews or want something more budget friendly, I have also used sunflower seeds to a good effect in the past.
SPRING ONIONS: Spring onions (known as scallions in the US) are used here to add a mild onion-like flavour. Pan-fry white and light green parts and save the dark green part for another use or add them straight into the mixture if you like a stronger onion flavour.
GARLIC: I added a small clove of garlic to my cashew ricotta. You can also use garlic powder if you prefer.
LEMON: Lemon juice and lemon zest add much needed tang and brightness to the filling. Adjust the amount of lemon juice to taste, of course. I found that 3 tbsp is ideal here.
NUTRITIONAL YEAST: Nutritional yeast – a staple vegan seasoning – adds depth of flavour and a note of cheesiness to the filling. There is nothing else like it, really. If you must replace it, a touch of white miso is also nice but remember that it is very salty so don’t add any extra salt until you have had a chance to taste it.
HERBS: Inspired by the flavours of spanakopita, I added a mixture of dill and flat leaf parsley to the filling. You can also just add one of those or use whatever you have: mint, basil and oregano all work a treat.
CHICKPEAS I added some chickpeas for a bit of different texture and extra protein. Cannellini beans would also work well.
PUFF PASTRY While you can make your own puff pastry if you like, I used shop-bought puff pastry for these spinach and ricotta rolls. Most supermarket pastry is accidentally vegan unless butter is explicitly mentioned on the packaging but do double-check if you are vegan. I just a sheet of Jus Rol to make these. If you want to make these rolls without gluten, that’s also possible – Jus Rol sells gluten-free puff pastry too.
HOW TO MAKE IT?
1) MAKE QUICK CASHEW RICOTTA
Drain your cashews and put in a food processor (not a blender as that requires far too much liquid) with lemon zest, lemon juice, a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and processes until creamy. If your food processor’s blades are dull, you may need to add a touch more (I’m talking a teaspoon or so) of liquid but do that only if necessary. Season with salt, a clove of garlic and nutritional yeast and set aside.
2) PAN FRY SPRING ONIONS
Cut dark green parts of your spring onions off and save for another use (they are great in a salad), slice white and light green parts of spring onions and pan-fry them until softened in the remaining olive oil.
3) PREP SPINACH AND MIX EVERYTHING UP
Blanch spinach leaves in a pot of simmering water for about 30 seconds. Plunge blanched spinach into a bowl of cold water to stop it form turning brown. Drain, then squeeze the excess moisture really well. You can use a tea towel, I simply grab handfuls of the spinach and squeeze them out over my sink. I go over the spinach twice to make sure it’s as dry as can be. Once dry, chop your spinach well and combine with cashew ricotta, spring onions, herbs and cooked chickpeas. Mix well. Taste and adjust the seasoning to taste.
4) ASSMBLE
Take your puff pastry sheet out of the fridge 10 minutes before your filling is ready. Divide it into two rectangles – their size will depend on how large your pastry is and how large you want to make these spinach and ricotta rolls. My sheet was 23 cm / 9 inches by 36 cm / 14 inches so when I divided it into two, I ended up with two rectangles measuring 23 cm / 9 inches by 18 cm / 7 inches. Place half of the filling in the middle of each rectangle (lengthwise), shape it into a snake and close the pastry over the filling. Next, gently flip the entire roll so that the seam ends up at the bottom. Finally portion into smaller rolls. I cut each roll into five two inch wide rolls.
5) BAKE
Brush vegan eggwash on top and the side of the rolls and sprinkle some sesame seeds and coarse salt on top. Bake until the pastry is golden brown.
- 130 g / 1 cup cashews or sunflower seeds, soaked overnight
- zest of 1 lemon + 45 ml / 3 tbsp juice
- 1 small garlic clove
- 45 ml / 3 tbsp olive oil, divided
- 300 g / 10.5 oz baby spinach
- 1 tbsp chopped dill
- 1 tbsp chopped parsley
- 6 small spring onions / scallions
- ½ tsp salt, adjust to taste
- generous grind of black pepper
- 12 g / 4 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1½ cups cooked chickpeas (from a tin or jar)
- ½ cup coarse breadcrumbs (GF if needed)
- 1 sheet vegan puff pastry*
- vegan egg wash: 2 tsp plant milk, 1 tsp olive oil + 1 tsp maple syrup or sugar
- 1 tbsp sesame or poppy seeds, to decorate
- Soak cashews (or sunflower seeds) in cold water overnight.
- Heat up the oven to 200° C / 390° F (180° C / 355° F fan) and line a baking tray with a piece of baking paper. If you have a pizza stone, place it in the oven to preheat, overwise a solid metal tray does the job too – it ensures that bottoms of the rolls do not get soggy.
- Place drained cashews in a food processor with lemon juice, lemon zest, 2 tbsp of olive oil, a garlic clove, nutritional yeast and about half a teaspoon of salt. Process until creamy and smooth, scrapping the sides of the food processor bowl regularly.
- Cut dark green tops off spring onions off and save for another use, chop the rest into slices and pan-fry in the remaining tablespoon of oil, until softened.
- Blanch spinach in a pot of simmering water for 20 seconds. Remove and plunge into a bowl of cold water. Drain, then squeeze the water out of your spinach really well – that’s important. I grab handfuls of cooked spinach and squeeze the water out using my hands. Chop well.
- Take the puff pastry out of the fridge for about 10 minutes before assembling the rolls so that it’s more pliable.
- In a bowl, combine chopped spinach, cashew cheese mixture, pan-fried spring onions, chickpeas, herbs and breadcrumbs. Season with black pepper and more salt if needed.
- Divide your sheet of pastry into two widthwise. My pastry sheet measured 23 cm / 9 inches by 36 cm / 14 inches so I ended up with two rectangles measuring 23 cm / 9 inches by 18 cm / 7 inches.
- Place half of the filling in the middle of each rectangle of pastry in a long snake.
- Fold the pastry over the filling and seal it well using your fingers. Gently flip the roll so that the seam is at the bottom.
- Divide each roll into smaller portions, I cut each of mine into five two inch segments.
- Glaze the rolls with vegan egg wash and sprinkle with sesame and coarse salt.
- Arrange sausage rolls on a paper-lined baking tray (glazed side up) and place on the pre-heated pizza stone. Bake for about 25 minutes, until the pastry has puffed up and become golden brown.