Eggplant roulades

/5

PRESENTATION

Eggplant roulades

Eggplant season is nearly upon us. Are you ready to enjoy the many qualities of this vegetable that’s as nutritious as it is versatile? We’ve served them layered, stuffed, beccafico style, and in the form of balls or pizzas. All that remains is to roll them up, so we proudly present our eggplant roulades! In this recipe, the eggplant roulades are stuffed with a classic filling of ham and caciocavallo cheese, forming a delicious core that’s a heavenly combination in its own right. When accompanied by a delectable tomato sauce and baked in the oven, it will be irresistible. This dish is simple and quick to make, and it’s tasty and tempting enough to serve as an appetizer or as a generous side. In both cases, we advise you not to be stingy with the portions because no-one will be able to resist these inviting roulades that disappear in one bite! And there’s no need to change the menu if you have vegetarian guests, simply delight them with a delicious alternative: Mediterranean-style eggplant roulades.

INGREDIENTS
Ingredients for 12 rolls
Eggplant 7 oz (200 g)
Cooked ham 4 oz (100 g)
Caciocavallo cheese 4 oz (100 g)
Tomato purée ¾ cup (200 g)
Extra virgin olive oil 1 ¾ tbsp (10 g)
Fine salt to taste
Black pepper to taste
Preparation

How to prepare Eggplant roulades

To prepare the eggplant roulades, first wash and dry the eggplant, then remove the stalk and cut the eggplants lengthwise with a mandolin to obtain 12 slices around 2 mm thick (the thickness of a nickel)1. If you’d like, you can blot the eggplant slices with absorbent paper to remove any excess liquid 2, but this step is optional. Place the eggplant slices on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake in a convection oven preheated to 340°F (170°C) for 10 minutes 3.

In the meantime, heat the oil in a small saucepan and add the tomato passata 4. Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, then season with salt 5 and pepper. Use the mandolin to cut the caciocavallo cheese into slices of the same thickness as the eggplant slices 6.

Now you can assemble the roulades: place a slightly cooled slice of eggplant on the cutting board, add a slice of cooked ham 7, and finish with a couple of slices of caciocavallo cheese 8, then roll up each slice of eggplant 9. Continue until all the ingredients have been used up.

Place the rolls in a casserole dish with the part where the roll finishes facing downward 10. Once they are lined up side by side in the casserole dish, pour over the tomato sauce prepared earlier 11. Lastly, slice the remaining caciocavallo cheese 12

and sprinkle over the roulades 13. Bake in a conventional oven preheated to 360°F (180°C) for 7 minutes, then turn the broiler to 460°F (240°C) and broil for another 3 minutes 14. Your eggplant roulades are ready to be served 15, perhaps with a few leaves of fresh basil!

Storage

The eggplant roulades can be served warm or at room temperature. You can store them in the refrigerator for up to 2 days in an airtight container.

Tips

For an even gooier effect, replace the caciocavallo cheese with another type of cheese such as Edam. For a more indulgent version, try frying the eggplants instead of baking them in the oven, and then stuff them as described in the recipe! If you don’t have any eggplant to hand, these roulades will also be a surefire hit if you use summer squash instead!

For the translation of some texts, artificial intelligence tools may have been used.