A savory cheese strudel with grilled eggplant is a delicious baked treat for lunch or dinner. Enjoy it warm from the oven, at room temperature, or even cold from the refrigerator. If you’ve never tried a savory strudel, I think you will enjoy it. It’s like a favourite sandwich but instead of bread, you get the fillings wrapped up in flaky, buttery pastry.
I love to make strudels because they are perfect any time of day – just change the fillings. For breakfast, I might make a sweet strudel with fruit and for our main meal, I change that filling to something savory like this eggplant cheese strudel.
It’s a wonderful way to use up eggplant which seems to come from every direction during the summer. I like grilled eggplant because it’s easy to do ahead of time and then I keep it in the refrigerator and use it in recipes like this savory cheese strudel.
Easy Savory Cheese Strudel
If you’ve never had a strudel, this is a great recipe to try. Many are sweet, but I enjoy savory ones because they are like fancy sandwiches made with puff pastry. Speaking of which, you can use store bought puff pastry sheets for this recipe or make your own homemade pastry. It’s not as hard as you think – you can make it in about 10 minutes.
Once you know how to make a strudel the possibilities are endless with filling options. This eggplant and cheese version is delicious, but feel free to experiment with other fillings you like or try my mushroom , Caprese , or a sweet one like my strawberry cream cheese strudel.
For this eggplant puff pastry recipe, you don’t need many ingredients and just a few minutes to assemble it. Then it goes into the oven until it’s flaky, buttery, and hot inside with the melted cheese. It’s ready in about 30 minutes – perfect for lunch or dinner.
Ingredients
- Thawed puff pastry sheet
- Slice grilled eggplant
- Sliced Prosciutto di Parma
- Milk
- Olive Oil
- Salt
- Italian parsley
Recipe Steps
Grill the eggplant slices then toss with the olive oil, salt and chopped parsley. Take your thawed puff pastry sheet and roll it with a rolling pin a few times. Place half of the grilled eggplant slices down the middle of the sheet. Overlap them so there are no spaces in between them.
Top the eggplant with half of the sliced prosciutto and then sprinkle half of the cheese over the top. Repeat with another layer of eggplant, prosciutto, and cheese.
Slice the edges of the puff pastry into strips, stopping when you get to the filling. Pull the strips over the filling in a crisscross pattern.
Place the strudel on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush the top with the milk and bake it for about 30 minutes at 375°F (190°F).
FAQ
Yes, you will need to grill the eggplant before adding it to the strudel. Thinly slice it and then grill the slices on an outdoor grill or in a grill pan on the stove. Once cooked, you can refrigerate the slices until you are ready to use them.
Yes, it freezes great. Assemble the strudel as instructed and then wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and place it on a baking sheet. Freeze it on the sheet and then store it in a freezer container for up to three weeks. You can bake it frozen, but you will need to add some time to the baking time.
The leftovers will keep for two to three days in the refrigerator. Keep them wrapped or in an airtight container.
A savory strudel is always delicious especially when it’s stuffed with eggplant and cheese. It’s easy to do and perfect any time of day. I hope you enjoy it – Buon Appetito!
More Eggplant Recipes
Eggplant Cheese Strudel Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 puff pastry rectangular roll (thawed)
- 15-20 slices grilled eggplant
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon Italian parsley (minced)
- 6-8 slices Prosciutto di Parma
- 1-2 cups cheese shredded (firm mozzarella, gruyere, fontina, edam)
- 1-2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 375F (190C). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Clean and peel the eggplant (1-2 medium should do) and thinly slice. Using either a pan grill or bbq grill the slices of eggplant on both sides. Place in a large bowl and toss with olive oil, salt and parsley. Set aside.
- Roll puff pastry a couple of time with a rolling pin. Place half the eggplant overlapping down the middle of the dough, top with half the slices of prosciutto and sprinkle with half the cheese, repeat the layer.
- Make slits on the sides of the dough until you reach the filling. Criss cross cut slits over the mixture. Place on prepared cookie sheet. Brush with 1-2 tablespoons of milk and bake for approximately 25-30 minutes or until golden. Slice and serve. Enjoy!
Stefania says
Loved this recipe. Easy and always looks fabulous. I substituted crumbled italian sausage instead for prosciutto and it wa a huge hit. Very flavorful.
Rosemary says
Hi Stefania, thanks so much, so glad it was enjoyed. Have a great week.
Jann says
Just made this today for lunch. It is so good (my husband said it was addictive!). Will definitely make it again and now I also want to try your mushroom strudel also. Thanks for the great recipe!
Rosemary says
Hi Jann, thanks so much, so glad it was enjoyed, and let me know how the strudel is. Have a great weekend.