This is a sure-fire way to impress family and friends for your holiday feasting. AND it is easy. It just looks difficult.

This easy to make vegetable strudel with puff pastry is a brilliant way to 1. capture the season: stuffing in a plethora of ripe-now vegetables and 2. to use up vegetable stragglers in your fridge, freezer and pantry. The premise is the same: take puff pastry, line a bread mold, fill it with vegetables plus a little milk, cheese and seasoning then fold over the pastry to create an encasement. Bake, let cool slightly then unmold and slice the vegetable strudel into handsome, terrine-like slices for plating.

Wow: so fancy. That is what they will think. And they should, because you ARE that impressive.

Vegetable Strudel serves 8 - 10.

2 shallots chopped 3 T olive oil 8 oz. squash (or other veg) 2 zucchini, cut into rounds 8 oz. cauliflower florets 4 scallions 3 tsp fresh thyme S&P TT 3 eggs ¼ cup milk 1 T Parmesan 1 sheet puff pastry 1 egg yolk butter

oven 350. Saute shallots, add other vegetables and thyme for 5-7 min. Season, set aside. Beat eggs, milk and Parmesan. Season. Roll out pastry, butter 8 inch bread tin, line with parchment, then with dough (cut to fit). Fill with mix: 1/3 mix, 1/3 milk/egg mix and repeat 2x. Fold parchment over (to help 'fold' dough closed)  and brush  pastry with egg yolk. Bake 45 min, dust with herbs and serve in slices.

Now that I have told you one way to make this, let me tell you a second way: use custard dishes/ramekins instead of the loaf pan. Simply prepare vegetables (roast, saute, etc.), fill ramekin to top, pour the milk/egg/cheese mix into each and cover with a square of puff pastry. Be careful not to crimp the edges of the pastry around the ramekins. Simply place puff pastry square on top of each ramekin, letting the corners drape toward your counter. Bake, and unmold each by turning over in your hand. The puff pastry acts like a 'bowl' to the vegetable innards and makes for a brilliant presentation on the plate.