Crispy layers of phyllo pastry is the perfect wrapper to hold in tender roasted veggies and creamy, melted cheese to create this savory veggie strudel. This dish could be a served as a veggie main course, a starter or even a side.
It’s easier to make than you think and I’m going to show you how!
First of all you can use any combination of vegetables that you like, all is good. Maybe you have some odds and ends leftover in your fridge, or some that need to be cooked before they go bad, or like me maybe you just went a little over board when shopping for produce.
It doesn’t matter what combination of vegetables you have, the only thing you need to do is to precook them so they can be ready to assemble, they can be either grilled or roasted, I roasted the majority of mine except for the beans which I steamed.
The next thing is get yourself a box of phyllo pastry, you’ll find it in the frozen section, it’s very accessible these days. Don’t be intimidated by it, it’s so easy to work with and so forgiving, trust me. I always defrost mine overnight in the fridge and then take it out of the box to warm up to room temp before rolling it out, leave it in the plastic wrap though.
Phyllo needs to be covered while you’re working with it, it tends to dry up fast so it’s important that you cover it with a damp kitchen towel when you unfold it from the roll.
To further prep for this veggie strudel you have to make sure all the vegetables are cut into bite size pieces, so cut them up and set them aside.
There are six layers of phyllo here, the first five are sprayed one sheet at a time with olive oil spray then sprinkled with grated cheese like pecorino or parmesan and a few grinds of black pepper all over. Then you’ll want to continue layering the same way with each five sheets until you reach the sixth one, the top.
Next you’re going to spread your chopped veggies all around the pastry sheet, whatever combination you have, fill up the space like I did above leaving a border of a little over an inch on all four sides.
Dice up fresh mozzarella into cubes and add that on top of the mixed vegetables, equally distributing it all around, then grate more pecorino or parmesan on top of it. I also had a very small chunk of fontina cheese and I grated that onto the mixture as well, you get the picture, you don’t have to be so precise.
Any cheese combo will do, but it helps if you have at least one good melting cheese in there because it will help bind the veggies together.
Then your filled veggie strudel gets rolled up and baked seam side down until it gets nice and golden.
Let it rest before cutting!
Layers of crispy phyllo, tender roasted, savory mixed vegetables with warm melty cheese inside, oh yes, you’re going to love this!
Add a little dipping sauce and you’re good to go, enjoy!
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- 6 sheets of frozen phyllo pastry, defrosted according to the box and set out to get to room temp before using.
- roasted veggies, cooked and cut into bite size pieces, enough to spread out onto a 14x18 sheet of phyllo, choose your favorites with a variety of color.
- fresh mozzarella cut into small cubes enough to spread all over the top of the veggies
- pecorino or parmesan for spreading on each layer
- an additional small amount of cheese to crumble on for added flavor like blue, fontina, goat, or feta
- olive oil spray
- granulated garlic
- italian seasoning
- FOR DIPPING SAUCE;
- Roasted red peppers and a little marinara
- Heat the oven to 400F.
- Place parchment paper onto a half sheet pan with rimmed sides.
- Carefully place one sheet of phyllo onto the parchment, while making sure the others are covered with a damp kitchen towel.
- Spray phyllo sheet all over with olive oil spray then sprinkle with grated cheese and black pepper.
- Repeat above on each remaining phyllo sheets including the last one, the top.
- On the top layer spread out your veggies leaving an 1-1/2 inch border all around.
- Sprinkle lightly with granulated garlic on the veggies for added flavor.
- Spread the diced mozzarella all around, evenly distributing it.
- Add the small amount of the additional cheese of your choice.
- Looking at the sheet pan horizontally, fold the left and right sides of the phyllo where you made a border onto the veggie mixture.
- Then gently start at the bottom and slowly start to roll it up making sure the sides are still tucked in and covered.
- Place the rolled strudel seam side down.
- Spray the top with olive oil, black pepper, some Italian seasoning and some shredded cheese.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes or under golden and crispy.
- Let it rest before cutting then gently cut with a serrated knife.
- RED PEPPER DIPPING SAUCE;
- I whirled roasted red peppers and a little marinara in a food processor to make my sauce.
I’m Marie, a wife, mother, mother-in-law, and gramma of two beautiful girls. My passion is food, clear and simple but especially Italian food, hence the name of my blog, Proud Italian Cook. I want you to feel right at home here so grab a cup of coffee, I’ll get the pastries, take a look around and enjoy your visit! {
