This beautiful Spinach and Mushroom Filled Rolled Meatloaf is perfect for weeknight family dinners yet elegant enough for serving to guests!
This has been my go-to meatloaf recipe for several years. I was inspired by a similar stuffed meatloaf roll recipe I found in a tattered old cookbook from the 1980s purchased at a used book sale.
It is not a traditional Italian meatloaf but I've given it an Italian touch with my choice of cheeses. I like to use shredded mozzarella or Friulano cheese for the meat mixture and a hint of Parmigiano in the filling.
This elegant looking stuffed rolled meatloaf is fancy enough to serve for company (as I have often done). If you roll it just right you get that beautiful swirl of spinach and mushroom filling when you slice into it. And yet, it is a breeze to make.
Step by Step Instructions
Prepare the filling.
Defrost frozen spinach and squeeze out excess water. In a skillet sauté an onion, add mushrooms and cook until their water has evaporated. Add salt and pepper to taste. 
Transfer the mixture to a bowl and let cool slightly. Stir in the spinach, breadcrumbs, Parmigiano cheese, parsley and an egg.
In a large bowl combine the ground meat (I use a trio of beef, veal and pork), breadcrumbs, shredded mozzarella, egg, Worcestershire sauce and salt and pepper. Stir together using your hands.
To assemble:
Place the meat on a rectangular sheet pan covered in parchment paper. Flatten the meat with your hands. Place another sheet of parchment paper over the meat. Use a rolling pin to flatten the meat to cover the entire pan. If necessary, use your hands to cover all the corners.
Remove the parchment paper over the meat and set it aside for later. Spread the prepared spinach mushroom mixture over the entire surface, leaving a 1 inch border on all sides.
Beginning at one of the long ends, carefully lift the edges of the parchment paper and begin rolling the meatloaf. Place the other piece of parchment paper you set aside at the other end to 'catch' the meatloaf once it is complete rolled. Make sure the meatloaf is resting seem side down on the parchment paper.
Bake in a 350F preheated oven for an hour until browned. If the meat begins to brown too much in the last 15 minutes of baking, loosely cover with a sheet of aluminum foil. Let sit a few minutes before slicing it.
Tips and suggestions:
- When cooking with ground meat, I prefer using the combined trio of beef, veal and pork. However this recipe will work with well with any combination of different ground meats or you can stick to one variety only.
- Prepare the spinach and mushroom mixture ahead of time, which is ideal as it needs to cool.
- This recipe must be assembled right before baking. I noticed that if you prepare it hours prior to baking, the layer of meat touching the spinach mixture remains red and has an undesirable texture.
- Let the meatloaf sit a few minutes before slicing it. It will hold it's shape better.
Once you've tried this meatloaf it will become your go to meatloaf recipe! If you try out this recipe please share with me your photos of this meatloaf by tagging me with #mangiabedda or @mangiabedda on Facebook or Instagram. Buon appetito!
Check out more ground meat recipes:
- The Best Italian Meatballs
- Escarole and Meatball Soup
- Polpettone with Hard Boiled Eggs
- Sicilian Sweet and Sour Meatballs
- Italian Meatball Stew with Potatoes and Peas
- Pastina Soup with Tiny Meatballs
Ingredients
For the filling:
- 300 grams frozen spinach defrosted and squeezed dry
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion diced
- 1 cup mushrooms sliced
- ½ cup dry bread crumbs
- 2 tbsp. Parmigiano cheese grated
- ¼ cup fresh parsley chopped
- 1 egg
- ½ ts[p salt
- pepper to taste
For the meat:
- 2 lbs ground meat trio beef, veal, pork
- ½ cup dry bread crumbs
- 1 cup mozzarella shredded (or Friulano cheese)
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
- 2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ pepper
Instructions
Prepare the filling:
- Defrost frozen spinach and squeeze out excess water. Set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a medium skillet add onions and sauté until soft.
- Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring, until they have released their water and it evaporates. Add salt and pepper, to taste.
- Transfer to a bowl and allow to cool slightly. Add the spinach, breadcrumbs, Parmigiano, parsley, and egg. Mix well.
Prepare the meat mixture:
- Preheat oven to 350F and cover a rectangular sheet pan with parchment paper. Prepare a second sheet of parchment paper of equal size.
- In a large bowl combine the ground meat trio, bread crumbs, mozzarella, egg, Worcestershire sauce and salt and pepper. Mix well.
To assemble:
- Spread meat mixture onto a rectangular baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Cover with another piece of parchment paper and flatten, using a rolling pin to completely cover the sheet pan.
- Remove top parchment paper and set aside. Spread the spinach mixture evenly over meat leaving a 1 inch border all around.
- Roll up meat from one of the long ends jellyroll style, lifting with the paper as you roll. Place the meatloaf on a sheet of parchment paper on the baking sheet.
- Bake for about 1 hour or until a meat thermometer registers 170F. Let sit a few minutes before slicing it. Serve hot.
Notes
- When cooking with ground meat, I prefer using the combined trio of beef, veal and pork. However this recipe will work with well with any combination of different ground meats or you can stick to one variety only.
- Prepare the spinach and mushroom mixture ahead of time, which is ideal as it needs to cool.
- This recipe must be assembled right before baking. I noticed that if you prepare it hours prior to baking, the layer of meat touching the spinach mixture remains red and has an undesirable texture.
- Let the meatloaf sit a few minutes before slicing into it. It will hold it's shape better.
Max
This looks awesome and I can't wait to try it! I'll probably add garlic to both the filling and meat mixtures, as another poster suggested. I'm also thinking a tbsp of stone-ground mustard, smoked paprika, and perhaps some thyme would be good in the meat mixture. Finally, I'm wondering about another variation on the filling, namely crisping two slices of bacon in a skillet, reserving the renderings, and using that--instead of olive oil--to saute the onions, (fresh) spinach, and mushrooms. I'd mix the crumbled bacon together with the vegetables before making to the roulade. What are your thoughts on these variations?
Nadia
Hi Max, my suggestion to you is go for it! If these are ingredients and flavors that you enjoy then I'm sure it will be delicious. Do let me know how it turns out please!
JoAnn
This is a wonderful recipe. I've been making my own very similarly for nearly 40 years and it's always a hit. (1) I don't roll mine. Absolutely NOTHING I have ever attempted to "roll" (e.g., lasagnas, cabbages, eggplants, etc.) has EVER turned out "right", so what I do is "layer it" in my 9'x13' pan, making a bottom layer with 1/2 of my meat mixture (I usually -- but not always -- use a mixture of ground beef and ground pork, and I do add Garlic to it, lol), then I add my "stuffings" and, finally, I cover it with the rest of my meats. Sometimes I'll top it off with some kind of sauce or glaze, while other times I won't. (2) I don't add Mozzarella (or any other cheese except the Parmesan) to my meat mixture Rather I include it with my "stuffings" (NOTE: I NEVER switch out the stuffings mix. It is ALWAYS Spinach, Mushrooms, and Onions), placing it on top of THAT mixture (Colby-Jack, Pepper-Jack, and Deli-sliced American are great substitutes. I've also been known to use Gouda, Gruyere, and even Ricotta, Brie or Feta, etc. -- IOWs, whatever I've got on hand). Sometimes I'll simply slice the cheese (my preferred way of dealing with block cheeses) while other times I'll "shred" it (I don't like these layered cheeses "grated". They seem to disappear into the lower levels of the Meatloaf if the pieces are too small, and our family likes it better when the Meatloaf is more "gooey" than not.). It's pretty much a "standard" that I make a Meatloaf of some sort for Saturday night's Dinner. That's when my Adult children and our Grandchildren come over for our weekly "Family Dinner" (the "young-uns".spend the night so their parents can have a "night off"). You KNOW that you've got a "winner" when immediately after saying "Hi, Grandma. Hi, Grandpa." the kids ask "And so what kind of Meatloaf are we going to have tonight?" (and sometimes even offer to help)! Thank you, Nadia, for the share.
Nadia
Hi JoAnn, thank you very much for sharing your technique for making this meatloaf! And I do like your variation ideas as well, thank you for sharing. I'm sure my readers will appreciate them! With time I've gotten the hang of the rolling part but this is great for those who may be intimidated by that step, they can layer it as you do. Thank you for taking the time to share and comment!
Zoe
Very tasty, but the spinach took on a weird texture in the oven, and the filling in general is begging for some garlic.
Nadia
Hello Zoe, I'm sorry to hear that the spinach seemed a little off. Question: did you bake the meatloaf right away or let it sit for a while first? And as for the filling you can definitely personalize it by adding garlic according to your taste. Thanks for commenting!
Pina
This meatloaf is delicious! Thank you so much for the recipe! We love it!
Nadia
Hi Pina, so glad you enjoyed it. It is definitely one of my family's favorites as well. Thanks for your feedback!
Sharon
Made this again and my husband loves it. We use ground venison and a little bulk sausage. Thank you for sharing this awesome recipe.
Nadia
Hi Sharon, so glad you enjoyed it and I love your variation. Sounds delicious! Thanks for your comment!
Kimberly
I’m sorry to say that while I loved the concept, I did not like this recipe and neither did my family. It lacked flavor and was moo much unlike traditional meatloaf. It was also too dry, and really needed a sauce to help.
Nadia
Hi Kimberly, I'm sorry to hear that you and your family did not enjoy this meatloaf. It is definitely not a traditional meatloaf. Aside from the eggs and cheese in the meat mixture that should add moisture, I feel that it is the spinach and mushroom filling that contribute to usually making this meatloaf very moist and flavorful. While I'm not crazy about topping my meatloaf with a sauce, that is definitely something you could try adding if you wish. Thank you for taking the time to give me your feedback.
Louis
My wife and I have been making this recipe for a couple of years now after discovering your wonderful website. It has gone thru some modifications with wine even though it doesn’t call for any. Well we do! So we’ve made some mistakes with adding a lot more parmigiana Ragano than called for, we’re not so good at measuring cheese I guess!
We’ve also used a good hot Italian sausage in place of the pork. Sometimes good ground pork is hard to find while Italian sausage is easy.
Great recipe as is or have some fun with it with making it your own!
Nadia
Hello Louis, so glad to hear how you've made this recipe your own. Thanks for sharing your variations with me and my readers!
Hermann Topolsek
One of the best meatloafs I have ever tasted I will be serving it again for another dinner this weekend serving it with leek and onion tart and broccoli salad.
Nadia
Hi Hermann, thanks for your kind feedback! It is indeed our favorite meatloaf and I have often served it to guests, they have all been impressed!
Marisa
It looks absolutely outstanding Nadia and so drool worthy! I really hope to try it soon! I’ve actually watched the episode among others and your a natural!
mangiabedda@gmail.com
Thanks Marisa, I’ve been meaning to post it for a while. As for the show, it has been an exciting experience, thanks for watching!