Five Cheese Zucchini Roll Ups are sliced zucchini wrapped around a creamy, cheesy mixture and nestled in a marinara sauce, all baked for a delicious and savory way to use your summer zucchini. Try my Zucchini Fritters for another tasty way to cook with zucchini.
FIVE CHEESE ZUCCHINI ROLL UPS
I absolutely love lasagna and a cheesy stuffed shells recipe. There is something so glorious about that cheesy mixture that is layered in lasagna or stuffed in manicotti or shells. These Zucchini Roll Ups use five kinds of cheese to get that cheesy filling but are wrapped in sliced zucchini, not pasta. And believe me, you won’t miss the pasta, and the cheese gets to stand out even more in these roll ups.
ZUCCHINI ROLL UPS RECIPE (FULL RECIPE BELOW)
There are three parts to this recipe that are easy to put together–the zucchini, the filling, and the cheese topping.
Ingredients
- Zucchini–2 medium zucchini should get you about 16 slices to use to roll up the cheese mixture.
- Marinara sauce
Filling Ingredients
- Ricotta cheese
- Mozzarella cheese
- Parmesan cheese
- Romano cheese
- Cream cheese
- Garlic
- Salt
- Pepper
- Parsley
For the mozzarella, parmesan, and romano cheeses, I recommend you getting blocks of those cheeses and grate them yourself, if possible.
Topping
- Shredded Mozzarella cheese
HOW TO SLICE ZUCCHINI
Wash each zucchini under cold or lukewarm water and slice the ends off before slicing the zucchini lengthwise for this recipe. I highly recommend using a mandoline for this recipe as zucchini is very firm and could be difficult to cut fine slices by hand. Adding a mandoline slicer to your cooking utensils is something I would recommend. You can use it to shred vegetables for a stir-fry, slice lemon for a cocktail garnish, and cut potatoes for french fries.
If you do not have a mandoline handy, slice the zucchini as thinly and as carefully as you can! You could also get away with using a cheese slicer.
Place each slice of zucchini on a paper towel-lined baking sheet. Top with more paper towels to dry up excess moisture as you make the filling.
HOW TO MAKE THE FIVE CHEESE FILLING
To make the cheese filling that will be wrapped up in the zucchini, simply combine the ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, romano cheese, cream cheese, garlic, salt, pepper, and parsley in a medium bowl.
HOW TO ASSEMBLE THE ZUCCHINI ROLL UPS
Once the zucchini has been sliced and the filling mixed together, it’s time to get the dish baked. First, pour about a cup of the marinara sauce into the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish and set that aside as you add the cheese mixture to the zucchini slices.
Remove the paper towels from the tops of the zucchini and spread about 2 tablespoons of the cheese mixture onto each slice. Roll the zucchini strip up, making sure to get all the cheese rolled up into the zucchini. Set the rolled up zucchini seam side down into the baking dish. Nestle it into the sauce. Follow this same process for the remaining zucchini strips.
After all the zucchini has been rolled up and placed in the baking dish, pour the remaining marinara sauce over the zucchini. Top that with the shredded mozzarella cheese and bake it, covered in aluminum foil, for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until the cheese is hot and bubbly.
VARIATIONS TO FIVE CHEESE ZUCCHINI ROLL UPS
These roll ups are low carb and meatless. But, if you wanted to add some meat to the roll ups, you could cook some ground beef, sausage, or even ground turkey to roll up into the zucchini. Sauteed mushrooms would be another delicious option in this dish.
You could also use different types of sauces, like an arrabbiata sauce, which would give it a little kick. Or, even a vodka sauce would work in this recipe. It’s one of those dishes that you can play around with until you get it just how you like it!
Ingredients
- 2 medium zucchini, cut lengthwise into 16 slices (1/4 inch thick)
- 1 jar (24 ounces) marinara sauce, divided
FILLING
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, grated
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
- 1/2 cup romano cheese, grated
- 6 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon fresh parsley, finely diced
TOPPING
- 1 cup mozzarella, shredded
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Pour 1 cup of the marinara sauce into the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish. Set aside.
Place sliced zucchini on a paper towel-lined baking sheet. Top with more paper towels to dry up excess moisture. Set aside while you prepare the filling.
In a medium bowl combine ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, romano cheese, cream cheese, garlic, salt, pepper, and parsley.
Remove paper towels from zucchini strips and working one strip at a time, spread about 2 tablespoons of the cheese mixture onto each slice of zucchini.
Roll the zucchini strip up to completely cover the cheese filling.
Set the rolled zucchini seam side down into the baking dish (nestle into the sauce).
Top with remaining marinara sauce and shredded cheese.
Cover with aluminum foil and bake 20 minutes.
Remove the foil and bake 10 more minutes or until cheese is hot and bubbly.
