A Super Easy Snack: Tortilla Rollups

The perfect nibble for after school, a play date or a grown-up party

Any parent of teenagers knows how hard it is to keep up with stocking the pantry and the fridge. One day, my son brought home friends after school and they were all hungry. Ravenous. Like Mother Hubbard though, my cupboards were a bit bare; none of the usual snacks with teenage appeal were available. What to do? I wanted to come up with something fast to keep them happy!

There are a multitude of recipes available for making tortilla rollups or "pinwheel" snacks. I came up with an ultra-easy version that day, inspired by the ingredients in my fridge and my need for speed. The end result - a satisfying, appealingly attractive and healthy snack!

Cream Cheese and Ham Tortilla Roll-Ups

Ingredients*

• 6 or 8 oz. cream cheese
  
• 1/2 lb. ham, very thinly sliced
  
• 6 soft flour tortillas, 6-inch diameter
  
• 1 tsp. Italian Seasoning ( I used Safeway Brand, found in the Spice aisle)

*Different seasoning, meat or larger tortillas could all be substituted for equally tasty results. The quantities I have suggested made about 2-dozen pieces.  

Feel free to substitute other favorite sandwich meat, cheeses or spices.

Directions

• Soften cream cheese in microwave for 15-20 seconds, until spreadable.
  
• Add Italian seasoning into cream cheese, mix well.
  
• Place tortilla on a clean cutting surface and coat it with about 1 or 2 tablespoons of cream cheese, covering entire surface. Using an offset spatula really makes it easy to spread the cream cheese. 
• Add a few ham slices, arranging them to cover the surface in 1 layer of thickness.
  
• Spread a very thin layer of cream cheese over the top of the ham
  
• Roll up the tortilla, being careful it doesn't begin to buckle; press lightly so it seals.
  
• Cut into bite sized pieces and arrange these, cut side up, on a plate.
  
• Cover and refrigerate until eaten.
  

These only took me about five minutes to make. 

Whenever I cut any sort of "roll-ups" into bites, I am never pleased with how the end pieces look. Rather than discard them, this time I was sure to just cut off a minimal amount from each end, and they became MY snack!

Give this a try next time your kids are hungry - you may even get a "thank you." I did!

Do your kids have a favorite snack?

Note: I previously had a version of this post published by Yahoo Contributor Network. On April 8, 2014, in a post on this blog I provided a link to that article.  Unfortunately, much of the YCN content that was published no longer exists on the Internet, but full rights were returned to the authors - so I thought I would republish the full recipe here today. 


This post may be linked to one of the great link-up parties I follow and list on my blog.  Check them out!