This........
Chicken Alfredo Roll - Ups! - they're easy to throw together and super scrumptious, albeit leaning a bit too close against the "too rich" wall. However, this is a great way to use some fairly basic ingredients in a new way, get an impressive and satisfying meal together for company or to take to a potluck or to a family after a new baby arrives.
Feel free to use jarred Alfredo sauce - sometimes I even take the lazy route and just open up a jar - but making your own Alfredo sauce is quick and surprisingly easy, and tastes a hundred times better than anything you can plop out of a jar, not to mention you'll feel good about yourself and what you're putting into your (and your loved one's) body when you made it from scratch without all those yucky chemicals and hard to pronounce ingredients.
Beyond that, if you can boil water, shred some chicken and roll things up, you've got this! It's slightly messy, but that just gives you an excuse to keep "taste-testing" the almost-finished product - you want to know what you're serving your guests, right? Just don't tell them if you forget to wash your hands each time ;)
Just serve one or two roll-ups with a side salad and - if you're feeling crazy and need more garlicky carby goodness - some garlic breadsticks or garlic rolls...I promise I won't tell, even if your elastic waisted pull-on pants the next day gives away your secret!
Chicken Alfredo Roll - Ups
9 lasagna noodles2 ½ cups Alfredo sauce (optional homemade recipe below)
2 cups cooked, shredded chicken (using rotisserie chicken saves even more time)
oregano
garlic salt
3 cups shredded Mozzarella, or cheese of your choice
Spray an 8x8 pan with non-stick spray and pour ½ cup Alfredo sauce, or just enough to cover the bottom of the pan. Boil 8-10 cups water in a large pan, cook lasagna noodles until al dente. (It helps to cook 1 or 2 extra since lasagna noodles always seem to break when during the boiling process or when you handle them after.)
Now this is important! Drain and rinse the noodles with cold water to prevent them from sticking to each other. Next, lay out each noodle individually and blot dry with a paper towel.
Spread about 2 Tbs. Alfredo sauce over each noodle. (if there is too much sauce you will have a big mess on your hands!) Sprinkle oregano and garlic salt on top of sauce. Take some shredded chicken and spread it out evenly over each noodle. Add approx. 3 Tbs. cheese. To roll up, start at one end and roll the noodle over the toppings. You will need to lift the noodle a little to prevent squishing out the inside ingredients while rolling.
Place the roll-ups in the pan, one by one, seam-side down so they don't come undone. Once they are all in the pan, pour the remaining Alfredo sauce over the top. Top with remaining cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted on top.
Serves 4-6 (1-2 roll-ups each)
Adapted from Mmm...Cafe
Garlic Alfredo Sauce
½ cup butter2 ounces cream cheese
2 cups heavy cream (or substitute half and half)
2 teaspoon garlic powder
½ tsp. fresh minced garlic
salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ tsp dried oregano
⅔ cup parmesan cheese
In a medium to large saucepan melt the butter over medium heat. Add fresh minced garlic and cook for 1 minute, or until fragrant. Add the cream cheese and whisk to smooth and melted. Whisk in the heavy cream.
Season with the garlic powder, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and whisk frequently until sauce thickens, around 15 minutes. Stir in the cheese and when melted, remove from heat and serve.
Makes 2 ½ cups
