Ham & Cheese Stuffed Zucchini Roulades en Casserole

I've been seeing so many lovely pictures on Pinterest of casseroles made with decoratively rolled zucchini slices. So pretty! Ooo! And ahh! Naturally, I succumbed. Here's my report.

This is a fancy dish for company and not something you will want to whip up for an every day supper; there is no question about that. I read a lot of recipes for this kind of elaborately presented zucchini casserole, and very few of them attempted to even hint at the challenges that making this presents. Indeed, I saw the word "easy" a lot.

It isn't actually that it's terribly hard, or beyond the scope of beginning cooks; it's that there are definite things that you need to know that tend to go unsaid. First of all, forget making this if you haven't got a mandoline or other similar slicing machine. You really cannot slice the zucchini evenly and thinly enough without one.

Okay, fine; you are able to slice the zucchini. Next up, nobody mentions that in order to acquire the necessary number of nice, evenly sized pieces of zucchini, you will need to discard a lot of sides and ends. I suggest saving these pieces and frying them up for a Zucchini Vinaigrette to be eaten tomorrow; but you will need to start with close to 33% more zucchini than will actually go into the casserole.

Nobody mentions that as you roll up the zucchini with the fillings and put them in the casserole, they will speedily unroll themselves into a mess while you roll up the next piece. You will need to hold them in place... while rolling up the next piece. Three hands would be, well, handy. Good luck with that. I do have a solution, which is to have them all set up and ready to roll at once, but it requires a certain amount of counter space. In fact, I did them in two batches and jammed the first half into place with an empty cheese packet while I worked on the second round of rounds.

And finally, I have to conclude that while this was very pleasant and we enjoyed it, I'm not sure it's sufficiently amazing to justify the time and labour involved - mind you, Mom absolutely raved about how good it was. Possibly it helps not to know just how much work. Good quality ham and cheese will be important for its success. It would work very well as a party piece though, as all that work happens at the front end; after that it's just baking it and serving it. I imagine it could be assembled somewhat in advance and baked as needed.

And finally, be cautious with that mandoline. I managed to use it safely, and wash it safely, and put it away sa - no; there went 1/8th of my thumbnail and certain amount of skin. Oops! Be careful out there!

4 to 6 servings
2 hours - 1 hour prep time

Prepare the Zucchini & Make the Sauce:
1 kg (4 medium-large; 2 pounds) zucchini
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons barley OR other flour
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon rubbed savory OR thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 1/4 cups whole milk OR light cream
2 large eggs

Use a mandolin or meat slicer to slice the zucchini lengthwise into thin slices. Sprinkle salt on one side of each of them and let them drain for half an hour in a strainer, then pour boiling water over them, being sure they are all equally drenched, and drain very well. Pat them dry with paper towel. You should have somewhere around 28 to 32 slices.

Meanwhile, make the sauce: put the butter, flour, mustard, and seasoning into a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Stir well, until you have a thick paste that wants to form a single mass. Whisk in the milk, a little at a time, to form a smooth sauce. When it has thickened, remove it from the heat and let it cool for a few minutes. When it is cool enough not to cook the eggs as they are added, whisk them together then whisk them into the sauce.

Finish the Roulades & Bake:
300 grams (10 ounces) firm but melty cheese slices
250 grams (1/2 pound) sliced deli ham OR turkey
2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup minced herbs
      - a selection from parsley, thyme, savory, basil, etc.

Use a shallow 1 1/2 quart/litre baking pan. Oil it well. Cut the cheese and ham slices into strips of about the same width as the zucchini slices.

Lay out the salted, blanched, and dried zucchini slices and sprinkle them with fresh herbs, which have been washed, trimmed, dried and minced. You could throw a little garlic in there if it seems appropriate. Top each slice of zucchini with a slice of ham or turkey and a slice of cheese, each of which should run about 2/3 to 3/4 the length of the zucchini slice; center them.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. 

Roll up the prepared slices - I found it best to keep the cheese about 1" from the narrowest end of the zucchini slice, which was then folded over the cheese, and rolled from there. Place them in the prepared baking pan. You will need to crowd them together, and hold them in place as you add more in order to keep the earlier ones from unrolling. Once they are all in, there should be a sufficient number of rolls to fill the pan and hold each other up.

Ladle the sauce evenly over the prepared rolls. Bake the casserole for  
1 hour at 350°F. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Posted in: Ontario Food