What’s better than spinach and artichoke dip you might ask? Well Spinach and Artichoke Pinwheels of course!
Pinwheel food comes in all shapes and sizes- some are made with tortillas, others rolled bread, many with cream cheese and some, like this, with puff pastry.
They are an easy party appetizer of creamy dip rolled in buttery puff pastry and baked until crispy. Hand held spinach dip, really.
Puff Pastry Pinwheels
Puff pastry is my best friend and is should be yours too. I always keep a few sheets in the freezer for quick appetizers and meals. Nearly anything can be baked into the flaky pastry sheets and *BOOM* it is gourmet.
Small amounts of leftover dip, shredded cheese, soft cheese, chocolate, marshmallows. Literally anything.
Ingredients
- Puff Pastry– This is usually frozen and one box has 2 sheets. Make sure it is fully defrosted according to package directions. Keep it cold until you use it though, it gets quite sticky and hard to work with as it warms.
- Mayonnaise- Full fat works best just because it is thicker. If you use light, reduce the amount to a scant quarter cup.
- Parmesan & Muenster Cheese– I love using a different cheese- everyone expects mozzarella or Swiss, but Muenster is buttery and mild enough to let the other flavors shine through.
- Onion powder, garlic powder, white pepper and salt- The seasonings are customizable, so feel free to adjust according to preference.
- Frozen Chopped Spinach– Make sure it is thawed and as dry as you can get it! I wring mine out in a tea towel.
- Artichoke Hearts– For fun you can also use hearts of palm, no they are not the same.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil– for basting. Melted butter can also be used.
How to Make Pinwheels (Step-by-Step)
Making these is easy and you can use pre-made dip if you want. Just make sure whatever you are using isn’t too thin, or it will just melt out. It needs a good amount of cheese to give it structure and glue it together.
If you are starting from scratch with my recipe, start at step #1, but if you are using your own dip, start with step #3.
- To start, the spinach and artichoke hearts need to be as dry as possible. Thaw and drain in a colander and then press excess water out. Sometimes I even wring it in a tea towel or roll it on paper towels.
- Stir together the rest of the ingredients except the olive oil and puff pastry, making sure it all gets blended evenly.
- Roll out one sheet of puff pastry, brush it with olive oil and then add half of the spinach mixture, spreading until almost the edges. Roll it up super tight and then secure it with plastic wrap. Repeat with the second sheet of puff pastry.
- Place the wrapped rolls in the freezer for 20-30 minutes- this gets them solidified just enough to make it easy to slice. Otherwise it can get weird and blobby. You want to keep that beautiful pinwheel spiral! Don’t keep them in there too long or else you run the risk of them getting so hard you can’t slice at all.
- After they are cut, you can bake them immediately or freeze the slices uncooked. If you do plan to freeze them at this stage, cut into discs then freeze- don’t freeze the whole roll.
- Place your slinces onto a baking sheet. I like to line mine with parchment to prevent sticking. The cheese can be a nuisance.
- Bake until puffy and golden brown. Enjoy them hot from the oven, cool or room temperature.
Storage, Leftovers and Freezing
These were also great to make ahead of time and freeze. Two puff pastry sheets come in each box and it is virtually impossible to re-freeze just one. Go ahead and make one full batch and freeze half for surprise guests or a quick snack.
More appetizer recipes for parties:
- Goat Cheese Zucchini Roll Ups
- Buffalo Chicken Pinwheels
- Creamy Jalapeno Stuffed Mushrooms
- Caramelized Onion & Pear Tarts
Spinach and Artichoke Pinwheels Recipe
Ingredients
- 10 ounces frozen chopped spinach ,thawed and drained
- 14 ounces artichoke hearts ,drained and chopped
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese ,finely grated
- 3/4 cup Muenster cheese ,shredded
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 sheets puff pastry
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Parchment paper
Instructions
- Stir together the artichoke hearts, spinach, mayonnaise, cheeses, onion powder, garlic powder, white pepper, salt. Set aside.
- Roll out one sheet of the puff pastry. Brush the extra virgin olive oil over the puff pastry sheet. Spread half of the spinach mixture onto the puff pastry sheet leaving a one inch margin on each side.
- Roll up sheet tightly. Wrap in plastic wrap.
- Repeat with second puff pastry sheet.
- Place in freezer for 20-30 minutes. Just long enough for the ingredients to solidify, but not so hard you can’t cut through it.
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Remove rolls from the freezer and cut into 1-inch thick slices (approximately 12 per roll).
- Place slices onto a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until puffy and lightly browned. Allow to stand for 3-5 minutes before serving.
- If you've tried this recipe, make sure to come back and let us know how it was in the comments or ratings.
Nutrition
Great recipe! — baked pinwheels look so impressive and the flavors in this recipe are great. Everyone “oohed and aahed” over how pretty they are, and then it was almost 100% gushing over the flavors… even those who said they don’t like spinach or artichokes liked the baked product. This is a keeper.
(And on the “day after” the flavors melded even better!)
So if I make the day before, do I put ingredients in puff pastry, roll it up, wrap it in saran wrap and put it in the refrigerator? Then tomorrow put it in the freezer for about 20 minutes take it out then slice and then put an oven? Would it be OK to do that?
Yep!
If you freeze the slices before baking, do you have to thaw them before you cook them?
No, I would suggest cooking them for an extra 2-3 minutes from frozen.
Can I make these the day before and place in fridge then bake?
You sure can!
These look amazing. Can they be made a day in advance and warmed up? Thank you.
They sure can! I even slice them and then freeze them in slices.
Ok, so I’m done mixing all the ingredients. I read the recipe over and over to make sure I did it right but the mixture is anything but creamy! It’s very dry. Is this normal? I don’t want to roll it up in the pastry sheets until I know I’m doing it right!
Yes! You don’t want it to be too creamy or else it will just fall right out. When you bake it, the cheeses will melt and it will get gooey. Just make sure you roll it really tight and then freeze before slicing.
I’m making these tonight for a party. Do I use artichokes in water or packed in oil??
I used packed in oil, but drained and dried, so either would work. Make sure you dry them though- otherwise they will be too watery to let the pastry puff up.
So i cut them and then Freeze?
Hi Rose! Nope- you roll it into a roll, then freeze them and cut while frozen so they don’t collapse and hold their shape.
Will these still taste ok if you make them the day before and reheat them the next day?
Yes! They will be just fine 🙂
Hi! Can you tell me how to freeze and bake these later? Do I bake the same amount of time while frozen?
Just wrap them up, like you would for the recipe. Cut them about an hour in so you don’t have to defrost when you are ready to make them. Bake for about 5-10 minutes longer. This will vary based on your oven and how thick you cut them, but the puff pastry will be puffy and browned! Just keep an eye on them 🙂
This was a HUGE hit at my sisters baby shower. everyone loved them and was asking for the recipe. They were easy and quick to make, which was great when trying to decorate.
Yay! That is what I love to hear. Thank you for sharing!