I think it’s about time I hire someone who will make up recipe names for my blog. I suck ass at it. I’ll pay them nothing, but I’ll feed them. Roll ups just remind you of fruit roll ups when you were a kid doesn’t it? Then gross you out since these have sausage in them? Same. Why did I ever like fruit roll ups? They never had a chocolate roll up. What was I thinking? Sometimes I hate my child self.
These are bomb though. Grilled zucchini + pesto + basil = why the hell wouldn’t it taste good? Duh. These would be perfect for a little appetizer. If I hosted parties, I’d totally make these for it. Instead I just eat all of them by myself. Life.Is.Good.
These kinda look like sushi rolls. I wish I liked sushi.
I went to the store yesterday and bought men’s clinical strength deodorant. Men’s. And I was opening and smelling every single kind. What smell was I looking for exactly? I’m trying to get dates, dates who are men. Most likely they aren’t going to be intrigued by the hue of man odor I leave behind while hugging them. Dating sucks.
Anywho, going back to life being good, I’ve been trying to be more positive lately. If you’ve read my blog much, you know I complain about petty sh*t constantly. Like the size of my ass. It’s annoying. Sometimes slightly humorous, but mostly annoying. I apologize. So I’ve been on the up and up train lately (whatever the sh*t that means) by writing a little more. I sometimes write in my gratitude journal (yes, that’s a real thing) and then I just sometimes write my feelings out for the world to see when I write for Again Faster. And that’s what I did last week. You can check out my latest article with them here.
So sweets have entered back in my life a bit. I know, I know. I don’t need to hear it. But I’m going to have to say goodbye to them once again. I’m trying to get a date here and if I eat even a teaspoon of honey, my body puffs up. No joke. I get a zit and I have a puffy stomach. What the sh*t is that. Dislike button right there. And the amount of things I’ll be cooking for my cookbook is going to be out of control. So I NEED this date so I have one more person to feed all this food to. A good looking one. Who CrossFits. And is funny. Eff you sweets. I don’t need you.
My brain is so weird.
Zucchini Pesto Roll Ups
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2-3 1x
Ingredients
- 2 zucchinis, ends removed, sliced 1/4 inch thick lengthwise
- 4 italian sausages (I used Boulder Sausage brand)
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 1 cup fresh basil
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 garlic clove
- salt and pepper to taste
- pinch of garlic powder
- 3 extra tablespoons olive oil to cook your zucchini with
Instructions
- Heat up your grill.
- Slice your zucchini with a knife or using a mandoline.
- Place your zucchini in a bowl with 3 tablespoons of olive oil, salt and pepper, and a pinch of garlic powder then use your hands to mix it and coat the zucchini.
- Place your italian sausages on the grill along with your zucchini.
- While the zucchini and sausages are cooking, make your pesto.
- Add your walnuts, garlic clove, and basil to the food processor and turn on. Then begin to add your olive oil while the food processor is still running.
- Then add your lemon juice and salt and pepper. Taste to see if you need more basil or lemon or salt and pepper. I think more lemon juice goes a long way.
- After your zucchini have cooked for about 4-5 minutes and have begun to show grill marks, flip them. Be sure to keep an eye on them because they will burn rather quickly.
- Once your zucchini are cooked through and sausage are completely cooked through, remove them to let cool.
- When your zucchini are cool to the touch, use a spoon to spread the pesto down the center of the zucchini strip and cut off an inch or so piece of sausage.
- Place the sausage in the middle of the zucchini so the cut sides are facing towards the outer ridges of the zucchini. You’ll figure it out.
- Wrap the zucchini around the sausage and use a toothpick to hold it in place.
- Serve to others or eat by yourself while watching the food network.
Notes
Makes 11-12 rolls
I was curious: why did you use walnuts instead of pine nuts?
because pine nuts are super expensive AND i had walnuts on hand 🙂 you are more than welcome to use pine nuts though!
look delicious, we are not very good with coming up with cute names for our recipes either 😉
I made these last night. nom nom nom!!!
No matter WHAT you call the, these look amazingly good! Can’t wait to try this out!
Hey, did you read that article on Mark’s Daily Apple about why women store fat the way they do? It was really interesting, and made me feel a little happier toward my thighs, which I usually loathe. If you wanted to take a break from hating your thighs, read that article. It was good. It made me think of your battle with your thighs/cellulite etc, which is the same battle I have too. Anyway, yes the rolls do look like sushi! They’re pretty! And great idea to make them for appetizers. 🙂
Yum! I made these with a capsicum/tomato/garlic paste instead of the pesto. Planning to use these as a snack. Thanks Juli!
You really need to check out my paleo skincare. I make everything myself and it is made fresh. My Primal Pit Stick and Dirty Mouth Primal ToothPowder are my most popular products! http://www.PrimalLifeOrganics.com
Make your own deodorant! It’s super paleo.
2 heaping T coconut oil, 3 heaping T corn starch, 1 level T baking soda. Stir. Adjust oil to starch ratio to your liking. Add feminine scent of your choice. I like lavender essential oil and tea tree oil. Store in adorable jar and apply with fingers 1-2 times daily. Let it soak in before dressing. Alternatively fill an old deodorant container and store in the fridge.
Kate, I just wanted to let you know if you are strict paleo, corn starch is not considered paleo.
Eating corn starch is not paleo, no. But applying it to the outside of the body is fine, as it merely sits on the surface and absorbs moisture. Its certainly more natural than aluminum tetra-[insert deodorant variation here].
I’ve taken paleo a step further and applied “caveman” to body care as well, to lessen toxic loads. This is a great way to use up corn starch from pre-paleo days!
Thanks for speaking up, I should have chose my wording more carefully 🙂
Hi Kate,
I am in the medical profession as well as owner of Primal Life Organics, a paleo skincare company. I just want to clarify that it is no different which route chemicals and toxins enter the body- via the mouth or absorption through the skin- they do the same harm. Yes, applying lotions to the skin DOES get absorbed. MANY medications are prescribed this way- nitroglycerin for example, which when applied topically, causes vasodilatation of the blood vessels. It is proven that what you apply to the skin DOES get absorbed. If you think the things that you apply to your skin do not matter, think again. A toxin is a toxin and it does not matter how it enters the body- it will have the same toxic effect. Do your body a favor and leave out the corn starch… especially if it is genetically modified. Thanks for the discussion. Education about paleo skincare is my passion because most skincare products contain numerous chemicals and many are still very unaware how this effects their efforts at the paleo lifestyle.
Trina:
Corn starch particles are too large to be absorbed through the skin. They are visible solids and will sit on the surface. It doesn’t dissolve in water or oil (unless the water is boiling in which case it forms a suspension). While it is true that many things applied to the skin will absorb directly into the blood stream, this is not true of corn starch.
I am not trying to step on toes or take away from your business, I see you have good products. Just offering up a friendly recipe, because it’s fun to experiment.
I use arrowroot powder instead of cornstarch
ugh these look so freakin good! every recipe looks so good!
O M G! Just made it a few hours and I am speechless. This is one of the easiest and best recipes I’ve ever tried. I’ve been on the zone-paleo diet for half a year now and it is so hard to find recipes that actually tastes good. I am definitely making these again! Thank you for making a blog dedicated to healthy food! I am going to try your lemon poppy seed waffles next 🙂