Grilled Zucchini Roll-Ups

I have this thing with goat cheese. It’s a bit of a love affair. I try not to let it interfere with my marriage. But I could eat goat cheese on pretty much anything and everything. Unfortunately, the hubby does not feel the same way as I do. He’ll eat it once in awhile, but adding it to his scrambled eggs in the morning, to his sandwich at lunch and to a salad in the evening is not something he would do. Me on the other hand…

So. When I found this recipe, I knew it would be perfect.

I haven’t changed much in her recipe. I don’t find that I use a cup of spinach, but I suppose that might depend on how much spinach you like in your roll-ups. (Okay, confession: I don’t even measure the spinach, I just plop the bag beside me and dig out what I need….but I’m fairly certain I don’t use a full cup.) Also, I love basil, so I use a good sized leaf in my roll-ups.

But you know what’s important? That you make these the way YOU like them. If you love goat cheese, double it up. If you hate basil, try something different!

I’ve used a few different flavours of goat cheese and they all turned out good. However, one time I tried to make these with ricotta instead of goat cheese….not so good. Trust me on that one. If you don’t like goat cheese, maybe try with some spreadable cream cheese instead.

I did these on the grill one time. But I admit that most times, I’m just lazy and do them in my [amazon_link id=”B0000CF66W” target=”_blank” ]grill pan[/amazon_link], hence my not-so-perfect grill marks. Oh well. Can’t win them all.

P.S. Her pictures are way better, but let’s not dwell on the fact that I hate photography, because we’ve already dealt with that one over here. Just tell me my iPhone pictures are pretty, hand me a glass of wine and back away slowly. Cool?

Print Recipe

Grilled Zucchini Roll-Ups

Course: Side Dish

Servings: 16 roll-ups

Author: The Gourmet Housewife

Ingredients

• 3 medium zucchini sliced lengthwise into 1/4-inch slices
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Freshly ground salt & pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 ounces soft goat cheese plain or flavoured!
• 1 tbsp freshly minced parsley leaves or 1 tsp dried
• 1/2 tsp lemon juice
• 1/2 cup baby spinach leaves
• 1/4 cup basil leaves

Instructions

• In a small bowl combine the goat cheese, parsley and lemon juice. Set aside
• Preheat an outdoor grill or grill pan for medium-high heat. Discard the outermost slices of zucchini and brush the rest of the slices with the oil on both sides. Season with salt and pepper. Place on a preheated grill or grill pan for about 4 minutes on each side, or until tender and you have nice grill marks. Remove to a large cutting board or other work area.
• Put 1/2 tsp of goat cheese mixture at one end of a zucchini slice. Top with a couple spinach leaves and a basil leaf. Roll up and place seam side down on a platter. Repeat with remaining zucchini slices.
• Serve hot or cold.