These Spinach and Ricotta Puff Pastry Pinwheels are an easy vegetarian savory appetizer recipe. Creamy spinach, melty ricotta, salty parmesan, and earthy spinach wrapped up in flaky, buttery puff pastry. Perfect for a party or just an easy snack, it's just such a delicious recipe and kids will love it too!
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Ingredients
Just a handful of ingredients to make these spinach and cheese rolls:
- Puff pastry: store-bought frozen puff pastry is a perfect shortcut that still tastes absolutely delicious. For the best results I use Dufour or Pepperidge Farm – I've used them many times and they're reliable puff pastry brands.
- Chopped spinach: I use frozen because it’s easier. Let it defrost and squeeze out the extra moisture.
- Ricotta cheese: Whole milk ricotta for that nice creaminess. This is one where you want regular store-bought ricotta as opposed to fresh ricotta because fresh is a bit runnier and you don’t want the cheese to run out of the pastry.
- Mozzarella cheese: Pre-shredded is fine!
- Parmesan cheese: I usually always say grate it yourself but in this instance pre-grated is perfectly fine.
- Spices (garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes): Add a bit more flavor and a little kick! If you are completely spice adverse or are feeding this to kids who may be, then just omit the red pepper flakes.
- If you want to use fresh garlic you can - grate a garlic clove or two into the mixture instead of the garlic powder
- Instead of red pepper flakes you can add a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce
Step by step instructions
Spinach ricotta puff pastry rolls are just as they sound, spinach and cheese rolled with puff pastry to make these adorable little vegetarian pinwheels. See how to make them below:
Prep: thaw the spinach and squeeze out the excess moisture / liquid.
Overview
Combine the spinach, ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, and spices in a bowl. Spread the mixture onto rolled out puff pastry, then roll it up, slice, brush with egg wash, and bake until golden.
Step by step
1. Make the spinach cheese mixture. In a large bowl, combine the thawed and drained spinach with the mozzarella, ricotta, parmesan, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper. Mix to combine.
2. Roll out the puff pastry. Grab your thawed puff pastry sheet and lightly flour a working surface – roll out the pastry until it’s roughly ¼” thin.
3. Add the spinach and cheese mixture. Spread the spinach and cheese mixture on the rolled out puff pastry leaving an empty inch of pastry on top and bottom.
4. Roll and cut. Roll the filled puff pastry as tightly as you can into a large log, gently pinching the edge together. Using a very sharp knife carefully cut the into 16-18 pieces to reveal the pinwheel shape.
5. Place on a baking sheet and brush with egg wash. Grab a large baking tray lined with parchment paper and place the rolls on it with an inch or two of empty space between each. Make an egg wash by combining 1 egg with 1 tablespoon water and whisking with a fork. Brush the tops and sides of the rolls with the egg wash.
6. Bake. Bake the rolls at 400F for 20 minutes until deeply golden brown and flaky.
Tips and tricks
- Don’t skip getting the excess water out of the thawed spinach - really squeeze it as much as you can. If you skip this step the spinach and cheese mixture will be too liquidy and will likely run out of your pinwheels. It'll also prevent you from getting crisp flaky pastry.
- If you want to be extra sure the puff pastry won’t spread too much, put the slices back in the fridge for 30 minutes - 1 hour before you bake them.
- To most easily thaw puff pastry, put it in the fridge the day before you want to use it. To thaw it more quickly if you’re in a pinch, leave it at room temperature and keep an eye on it, try to open up the folds as they become pliable to help it thaw more evenly.
- If you have homemade puff pastry, definitely use that!
- If you want to take this more of a Greek route than an Italian route, swap in feta cheese instead of the parmesan cheese
FAQs
Yes! There are a few options:
Before baking – Prep the pinwheels as far as rolling it into a log. Wrap the log in plastic wrap and store in the fridge for up to 24 hours. To bake, brush with egg wash and cook per original directions.
After baking – Store in an airtight container in the fridge. Warm in the oven before serving at 350F for 10 minutes.
Yes! Prep the pinwheels as far as cutting them into slices (do not brush with the egg wash). Freeze them on a baking sheet then transfer them to a freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months. To bake, brush with egg wash and bake at 400F for about 25-30 minutes until golden.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
Warm in the oven before serving at 350F for 10 minutes.
Yes - blanch about 8oz of fresh spinach, drain, squeeze out the moisture, and give it a rough chop. Or you can sauté the spinach over medium heat with a little bit of olive oil.
fryer model.
Spinach is rich in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, iron, folate, potassium, and fiber. More on this here.
You can try! To get vegan spinach pinwheels simply use vegan ricotta, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses (or cheeses similar - such as cheddar in place of mozzarella). I haven't tried this, but worth a go!
More vegetarian appetizer recipes
- Tomato confit whipped ricotta toasts
- Spicy roasted garlic white bean dip
- Strawberry balsamic crostini
- Zucchini corn fritters with chipotle mayo
📖 Recipe
Spinach and Ricotta Puff Pastry Pinwheels
Ingredients
- 1 sheet puff pastry
- 1 cup frozen chopped spinach
- 1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400F.
- In a large bowl, combine the thawed and drained spinach with the mozzarella, ricotta, parmesan, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper. Mix to combine.
- Grab your thawed puff pastry sheet and lightly flour a working surface – roll out the pastry until it’s roughly ¼” thin.
- Spread the spinach and cheese mixture on the rolled out puff pastry leaving an empty inch of pastry on top and bottom.
- Roll the filled puff pastry as tightly as you can into a large log, gently pinching the edge together. Using a very sharp knife carefully cut the into 16-18 pieces to reveal the pinwheel shape.
- Grab a large baking tray lined with parchment paper and place the rolls on it with an inch or two of empty space between each. Make an egg wash by combining 1 egg with 1 tablespoon water and whisking with a fork. Brush the tops and sides of the rolls with the egg wash.
- Bake the rolls at 400F for 20 minutes until deeply golden brown and flaky.
Barbara says
Can the spinach and ricato be made ahead
Haley says
Sure! I'd suggest 1-2 days max. If it gets watery after sitting drain the excess liquid out of the bowl if you can.
Ginny says
Can I use fresh spinach? Sounds delicious, Thanks for sharing!
Haley says
Yes just wilt it down (sauté or blanch) and then squeeze out the liquid!
Sue says
These look delicious, but can this be made using pre-made pie crust and cut to fit individual muffin cups? Frozen Puff Pastry isn't widely available in my local stores.
Haley says
That should be fine!