This is a simple recipe for ham and cheese pinwheels. A favorite puff pastry appetizer with 5 ingredients. Perfect for any occasion!
Baked pinwheels are tasty whether they are served warm or cold (even though the warm ones are a bit tastier). Plus, they can be made to everyone’s liking.
How to make ham and cheese pinwheels with puff pastry
Ingredients:
- Puff pastry
- Thai sweet chili sauce
- Ham
- Cheese
- Olives
Tools:
- Chopping board & knife
- Measuring cups or scale
- Baking sheet and baking paper
Spread rolled out puff pastry with sweet chili sauce, top this with ham, cheese and finely chopped olives and roll tight. Slice and bake until nice golden brown and puffed (A full printable recipe card is at the bottom of this post).
How thick should they be?
About an inch (2.5 centimeters) per pinwheel.
Puff pastry is such a versatile pastry. You can use it to make all kinds of things from desserts to mains to snacks.
It usually cooks fast and can be topped or filled with anything you like. You can keep it simple and make parmesan breadsticks or bacon twists.
Both are easy to make and delicious. Or, make beef wellington bites – a slightly more “complicated” recipe but perfect for a special occasion.
Frequently asked questions
Can you make them in air fryer?
Yes, you can! Keep in mind that you will need to do this in 2 batches though as you won’t be able to fit all of them in at once.
How long will puff pastry pinwheels last?
These are best eaten right away but any leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Can you make them ahead?
You can make these pinwheels ahead and serve them cold (or reheated) if you wish.
What is the best puff pastry to use?
The best is the one you like or have experience with. I prefer using chilled pastry because it is sold pre-rolled, and I simply unroll it and use it any way I want.
When using frozen pastry, make sure you allocate plenty of time for thawing.
Useful tips
- You can use either green or black olives or both. I used a combination of both as I had some leftover stuffed green olives on hand. Those are more flavorful but also stronger in taste and they might not be to everyone’s taste. Feel free to use any variety you like, just make sure you buy the pitted ones!
- If you don’t like Thai sweet chili sauce, try red or green pesto instead.
- Mozzarella works great here but you can use another type of cheese if you want. Keep in mind that they all melt at different speed – some faster than others, some more than others. My preferred varieties are mozzarella or cheddar.
Other easy pinwheel recipes
Ham and Cheese Pinwheels
Ingredients
- 1 sheet puff pastry (chilled, 9 ounces/260 grams, see note 1)
- ¼ cup sweet chili sauce (75 grams, see note 2)
- 7 ounces deli ham (thinly sliced, 200 grams, see note 3)
- 6 cheese (large slices, 120 grams, see note 4)
- ⅓ cup olives (pitted, 45 grams, finely chopped, see note 5)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit/200 Celsius.
- Unroll the pre-rolled puff pastry and brush it with sweet chili sauce. Top with ham, cheese and finely chopped olives, leaving an inch (2.5 centimeters) space along one of the longer edges.
- Take the opposite longer edge of the pastry and roll it tight. With a knife, cut into equally looking slices – about an inch thick (2.5 centimeters).
- Transfer them onto a baking sheet lined with baking parchment, leaving some space between them.
- Bake until nicely puffed and golden brown, about 15 minutes (see note 6).
- Enjoy warm or cold!
Notes
- You can use frozen puff pastry. Make sure to let it thaw in the fridge overnight and roll it out into 10x12 inch (25x30 centimeter) rectangle. You will need 1 sheet for this recipe or double the filling and use 2 sheets.
- If you don’t want to use sweet chili sauce, try pesto instead.
- Any deli ham will work. Turkey ham will also work great.
- Cheddar or mozzarella are our favorite, but you can experiment with other types, if you want. Bear in mind that they all melt at different speed and some melt more than others.
- You can use either pitted green or black olives. They can be stuffed or plain – use anything you like.
- The cooking time may vary slightly. This will depend on your oven, the size of the pinwheels as well as the pastry. Chilled pastry tends to cook a bit faster than thawed. For that reason, I recommend keeping an eye on them when making them for the first time.
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