Vegan Zucchini Sweet Potato Rolls

Okay… here is where I admit that I’m a horrible food blogger who did not properly plan and prepare a festive July 4th recipe to share with you…do I lose any and all credibility I may have built up to this point??? I could pretend that I took the route of sharing a small, healthy appetizer with you for your July 4th bash. I could even say that I opted to use a blue and white linen napkin in the spirit of this great holiday, since the food itself is rather lacking in the department of festive spirit {red, white and blue}. But I’m afraid you’d see right through me!

So, let me apologize for my lack of planning and instead share how these tasty Vegan Zucchini Sweet Potato Rolls came about! There were a few contributing factors:

1. I had zucchini’s in the refrigerator that I needed to get used up before our move
2. I didn’t want to spiralize them again in fear that you’d think I only knew how to eat zucchini one way!
3. I came across these gorgeous Grilled Zucchini Rolls from A Tasty Love Story and was instantly inspired!

Unfortunately we don’t actually have a grill at this particular time and I had to do these indoor on my little Panini maker. Still tasty, but no lovely little grill marks to add to their beauty.

Pretty grill marks or not, these would make a tasty, waist-line friendly appetizer to serve at your next gathering. Or, do like we did and make them a light summer dinner for two.

Zucchini is made up of a lot of water, which is then released upon cooking. To help with this, I’d suggest slicing them, laying them out on some fresh paper towels and coating them in a layer of salt, then let them sit for about 15 minutes. This helps to sweat the water out. After the 15 minutes, apply pressure with a paper towel to remove some of that moisture.

If you cook them on an outdoor grill, it’s likely that a lot of that water will run off into the grill. However if you’re in my situation, and need to cook them indoors on a Panini maker or even just on the stove top in a skillet, you will likely need to take a paper towel to them after they’ve cooked {in addition to the “sweating” process} to help soak up some of the water.

Aside from the slight challenge of the water in the zucchini, this appetizer is a breeze to make! Roast the sweet potatoes for 10-15 minutes with a little salt, pepper and smoked paprika; slice up some avocado and these tasty vegan appetizer bites are made in a matter of minutes!

Even though I didn’t fulfill my food-blogger role of providing you with something fun for July 4th, I really do hope you have a wonderful, celebratory weekend!

Happy 4Th!