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Eggplant Zucchini Pesto Involtini. This Italian Involtini is the perfect summertime dinner, using both in-season eggplant and zucchini! Summer zucchini and eggplant are sliced into ribbons, rolled up with basil pesto and ricotta cheese, and then baked in a spicy, herby tomato sauce. Simple to make and so delicious!
It’s crazy that we’re already entering the second half of July. After a weekend spent in Cleveland, I quickly realized that we are somehow deep into summer. The produce in the Midwest is thriving, and a quick trip to Whole Foods proved that.
For me, this is such a fun time of year to cook in the kitchen. The variety of tomatoes, squashes, peppers, and fruits the season has to offer makes my produce options endless!
I always have a lot of fun trying to be creative with foods I haven’t used before or don’t use often. Eggplant is a produce I’ve only cooked with a handful of times, but I had fun here, and I’m excited to share this new recipe with you all!
Eggplant isn’t always the yummiest vegetable, but when cooked properly, it can be delicious!
Today I combined it with yellow summer squash (or zucchini) for a good mix and it came out perfect!
Here are the details
Step 1: roast the eggplant
Start by slicing the eggplant into strips and roasting it to make it easier to work with and less tough.
Then just olive oil and some salt and into the oven it goes.
Step 2: make the sauce
While the eggplant is roasting, make the tomato sauce.
I kept this very simple, using canned tomatoes, fresh oregano, and thyme. I did add a special ingredient, spicy Italian chicken sausage.
Of course, if you’re vegetarian or just going for a meatless Monday, you can easily omit the sausage from the sauce. I recommend adding some fresh garlic and a touch more crushed red pepper flakes. This will keep the sauce flavorful and spicy.
Step 3: prep the zucchini
Start by slicing the zucchini into thin ribbons. I find this easiest to do with a mandoline, but you can also use a knife. Lay the zucchini flat, sprinkle it with salt, and let it sit for a few minutes.
This will draw out any excess water and make the zucchini ribbons pliable for rolling. It’s a little extra work, but it’s worth it.
Step 4: the ricotta
Now mix ricotta cheese with basil pesto. I also mix in Fontina cheese. YUM!
Step 5: roll and bake
Take the eggplant and zucchini and place a dollop of ricotta cheese onto each strip, then roll the ricotta cheese up in the eggplant and zucchini. You should now have cute little stuffed rolls!
Place each roll into the tomato sauce. Add cheese on top, then bake until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melty.
Your kitchen will smell incredible, like an Italian grandma’s kitchen!
If I could best describe this dish I would say that it’s kind of like stuffed pasta shells, but minus the pasta. It truly is mouth-watering. This is a great way to use the season’s best produce. It’s also easy enough to serve any night of the week or for your next Saturday night dinner party.
Looking for other summer pasta? Try these weeknight favorites.
Lemon Basil Zucchini Pasta Alfredo
Jammy Cherry Tomato Pasta with Crisp Lemon Rosemary Chickpeas
Antipasto Pasta Salad with Herby Parmesan Vinaigrette
One Pot Lemon Basil, Asparagus, and Sausage Pasta
20 minute lemon butter pasta with ricotta and spicy breadcrumbs
Lastly, if you make this Eggplant Zucchini Pesto Involtini, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Spicy Pesto Eggplant Zucchini Involtini
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 618 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 large eggplant
- salt and black pepper
- 1 pound ground spicy Italian chicken sausage
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 can (14 ounce) crushed San Marzano tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- chili flakes
- 1 large zucchini or yellow summer squash
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1 cup shredded fontina cheese
- 3/4 cup basil pesto
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- fresh basil, for serving
Instructions
- 1. Preheat your oven to 400° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 2. Cut the tops and bottoms off the eggplants. Slice lengthwise into 4-5 slices. Drizzle them with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake for 20 minutes or until soft.3. Meanwhile, make the sauce. In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the sausage all over, about 5 minutes. Add the bell pepper, tomatoes, oregano, thyme, chili flakes, salt, and pepper. Simmer for 10 minutes or until the sauce thickens slightly. 4. Using a mandolin or vegetable peeler, peel the zucchini into 1/4 inch wide strips and lay them flat on a paper towel-lined counter. You should have around 30 strips. Sprinkle the zucchini with salt. 5. In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta, fontina, and 1/2 cup pesto. 6. To assemble, spoon 3/4 of the tomato sauce into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Grab 2 zucchini ribbons and lay them side by side lengthwise. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of filling onto the center of the zucchini. Roll into a coil and place each seam-side down in the dish as you go. Do the same thing with the roasted eggplant, adding each roll directly to the sauce. Spoon the remaining tomato sauce over top of the dish. Top with 1/4 cup pesto. Add the mozzarella.7. Bake for 20 minutes or until the cheese has melted and is lightly browned on top. Cool for 5 minutes before serving. Serve with fresh basil. Enjoy!
I planted eggplant for the first time without a plan for them. This dish is very flexible and yummy. I used beef/pork sausage and my homemade frozen tomato sauce. So yummy. Flavorful, filling, while being light in the belly.
Hey Jessica,
Happy Sunday! So glad to hear that this dish turned out nicely for you, thanks for making it! xT
Sooo good!! We got eggplant in a box from our farmers market and have never cooked with it before, but this will make us buy it again! We only have chorizo on hand, so used that in the sauce, and it was delicious!
Hey Tracy,
So glad to hear that you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for making it and your feedback! xx
This recipe was very tasty. A lighter version of lasagna.
A couple notes on the recipe:
– The 1/4″ slice on the eggplant was perfect for roasting and then wrapping the filling.
– The 1/4″ slice on the zucchini and yellow squash was much too thick. Even after salting and sitting, it wasn’t pliable enough to wrap. The 1/16″ setting on the mandolin was much better. (To get 30 (1/4″) slices out of 1 squash, you would need a 7″ squash)
– I also couldn’t find chicken sausage at the store, so used Italian pork sausage. It was very tasty, but the sauce wasn’t very saucy, so I added an additional can of crushed tomatoes.
– The total time on the recipe is listed as 30 min cooking and 30 min prep. But with 20 min to roast the eggplant and 20 min to bake the complete dish – the cooking time needs updated. Plus, rolling all the involtini takes some time (and a lot of counter space).
Overall, a solid dish, but the instructions could use a little editing.
Hey Cindy,
Happy Sunday! I appreciate you making this recipe and your feedback, so glad to hear it turned out nicely for you! Thanks for all of your notes regarding the instructions! xx
Can this be made ahead and put in the fridge until ready to bake?
Hey Carr,
Sure, that will work nicely for you! Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this dish! xT
Are you supposed to pat the zucchini dry after salting it?
Hi Katie,
No, you do not need to do that for this recipe. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Made this tonight for dinner. It was a little messy to prepare…slicing and cutting the eggplant and zucchini was a chore. Plus I had two large eggplants and only used one. Also my yellow squash was smallish and hard to slice so thin. The flavors and yumminess did out weigh the mess. Next time I will use bigger zucchini and only 1 eggplant. Love your recipes….keep them coming.
Hey Marni,
Thanks for your kind message and giving this dish a try:) Glad to hear that it was enjoyed! Have a great day! xT
I have made this before and loved it. Do you think it can be made ahead and frozen? I’d like to do that and take it on vacation.
Hey Gayle,
So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe! Yes, I think it would be just fine for you to freeze and then reheat in the oven. xT
I am looking forward to making this recipe. I have eggplant from my garden, but it is the Japanese variety, so the size of the zucchini. Should I still bake it first? So far this summer it has been very tender. Thank you!
Hey Sara,
Yes, I would still follow the recipe as written:) Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this dish! xT
This was really good, and had a nice lightness to it. Delicious flavors, and satisfying without being too filling. A perfect summer entree! 🙂
Thanks so much, Kelly! Love to hear that you enjoyed this dish, thanks for giving it a try! xT
This was absolutely delicious!! Loved every bite and enjoyed the tender veggies! Thank you for another spectacular meal ❤️
Hey Mindy,
Wonderful! Thanks so much for your comment, love to hear that this recipe turned out nicely for you, I appreciate you giving it a try! x
Another hit Tieghan. The pesto in the cheese filing was a great idea. Perfect summer dinner. Really enjoyed the dish.
Mike
Thanks so much, Mike! So glad to hear you enjoyed this dish, I appreciate you giving it a try! xT
Delicious and fun way to use my summer produce. I had an overload of tomatoes and zucchini from my parents garden as well as some herbed goat cheese from the farmers market that I used as part of the filling since I didn’t have ricotta on hand. Was full of flavor and I can’t wait to eat the leftovers today (and also for your next cookbook)! Thank you for sharing your creative dishes and positive energy with us!
Hey Ashley,
Wonderful! Thank you so much for trying this dish and sharing your comment:) Love to hear that it was enjoyed! xT
Perfect recipe – very simple and easy too! Thanks for another hit, Tieghan!
Thanks so much, Evan! Love to hear that you enjoyed this dish, I appreciate you giving it a try! xT
Tasty! A little fussy.
Hey Norma,
Thanks for trying this dish and sharing your feedback! Glad to hear you enjoyed the flavors:) xT
So I made this Sunday for dinner! I am Italian and a real purest when it comes to Italian food. I always think why mess up a perfect dish. I must say this recipe is fantastic! I really like how you used the zucchini with the eggplant! So happy you used Fontina cheese! I think it is an under used cheese and it is so creamy and melds so well with this dish. Family loved it and so did I. It is a perfect summer bake!
Hey Kathy,
Wonderful! Thank you so much for trying this dish and your kind feedback:) Love to hear that it was enjoyed! xT