I am all about making simple and quick dinners lately.  Because I started a new job and I’m actually working away from home for the first time in like three years, it’s taking a bit to adjust. 

I don’t get unlimited time to prep meals all day.  I don’t get to decide last minute what I would like to make for dinner.  Some days, I don’t even get to make dinner myself and hubby has to step up.  It’s weird, a little chaotic, but I know I’ll find my rhythm soon.

Until then, I’m doing my best to meal prep everything over the weekend, make a meal plan for the week, and doing my best to go with the flow if things sort of fall apart.  I came up with these Baked Zucchini Rolls because I wanted to test out my new cream cheese recipe in another recipe and I could make these ahead of time and then just pop them in the oven when dinner rolls around. 

It does take a bit of time to prep this meal, especially if you make the tomato sauce yourself.  Keep that in mind if you’re doing your own meal prep.  You can easily put together this the night before or even store it in the fridge for a few days before you decide to bake it.  You can also make this a lot easier by buying tomato sauce or using regular cream cheese/ricotta.  You do what you can do and make life simple for you.

That’s what really matters.

Baked Zucchini Rolls- serves 4-6 depending on how many rolls you make 

For one roll: Calories: 37 Total Fat: 3.66 g Carbs: 1.08 g Fiber: .4 g Protein: .47 g

• 2-3 medium zucchini
• 1 cup of Macadamia Chive Cream Cheese*
• 2 cups tomato sauce (the recipe I used is below or you can use this one or buy some)
• Olive oil
• sea salt and pepper

*You can also mix 1/2 cup cream cheese with 1/2 cup ricotta if you tolerate dairy*

1. Preheat the oven to 325 and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat.  You might need two baking sheets, depending on how many rolls you want to make.
2. Trim the ends off the zucchini and thinly slice lengthwise (about 1/4 in. slices).  You’re essentially making lasagna noodles out of the zucchini.  A mandolin works well here but you can also use a very sharp knife.  You should end up with 12 to 20 slices depending on how many zucchinis you use.
3. Lay the zucchini “noodles” on the baking sheets and lightly oil with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Bake for about 10 minutes until the zucchini is soft and just starting to brown.  Allow to cool for five minutes before you handle them.
4. While the zucchini is baking and cooking, you can make the tomato sauce below OR pop open the stuff you bought.  Pour about 1/2 cup in the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish.  Reserve the rest.
5. Once the zucchini is cool, spread about 1 to 2 tablespoons worth of the Macadamia Chive Cream Cheese (or ricotta + cream cheese) onto each slice.  Roll the zucchini noodles up and place in the dish standing upright so you can see the swirl at the top.
6. Add the rest of the tomato sauce to the top of the zucchini rolls.  Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake at 350 for 20 minutes.  Remove the dish and take off the aluminum foil and bake for another 5 minutes.  Remove from the oven and let it cool before you serve.

Tomato Sauce- makes about 2 cups worth

Calories: 30 Total Fat: 1.48 g Carbs: 3.34 g Fiber: .8 g Protein: 1.6 g

• 1 can tomato pulp (I used the Mutti brand)
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/4 cup full-fat coconut milk
• about 12 anchovies (yes, it’s weird and you might think it’s gross BUT it really makes this sauce excellent)
• 2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

1. Place everything in a blender or use an immersion blender to combine everything well.  You can heat it up before you use it, but it isn’t necessary.