My turkey pinwheels are the perfect portable lunch or snack. Nutritious and tasty, we layer cream cheese, red onion, turkey, bacon, cranberry sauce, spinach, and cheese in a flour tortilla.
It’s a great combination of sweet and savory in every bite! Pack these pinwheels in your child’s lunch, they will be eaten within 2 hours, (remember the 2-hour rule! If you don’t, read it here) for something different, or take it on an outing with your family! They’re also picnic and potluck perfect. You will love how it tastes.
These babies are so versatile. You can add or omit ingredients as much as you like. Personalize your pinwheels.
Who doesn’t love Pinwheels? I hope you’ll try our pizza pinwheels, ham and cheese pinwheels, sausage pinwheels, and cheesy French pinwheels. I promise they’re all delicious!
Turkey Pinwheels Ingredients
- Bacon: Any brand, sliced. This adds smokiness and crunch.
- Cream Cheese: Regular or reduced fat. The layer of cream cheese acts as a barrier so the tortilla does not get soggy.
- Cranberry Sauce: Jellied in a can. So sweet and tart!
- Black Pepper
- Red Onion: The addition of red onions makes all the difference!
- Turkey: any sliced deli turkey meat
- Cheddar Cheese: I used sharp cheddar. Choose your favorite.
- Spinach: Make sure to rinse and stem
- Flour Tortillas (10-inch): Any brand of flour tortilla
Tips
- Gotta Have A Border! When arranging the ingredients, leave a 1-inch border around the top half of the tortilla. However. Spread the cream cheese over the entire tortilla. The cream cheese will act as the “glue” to hold the pinwheel together after rolling.
- Keep It Tightly Rolled: After rolling, wrap the tortilla in plastic wrap and refrigerate. When ready to eat, carefully slice to make the pinwheels.
- To Slice Or Not: Instead of slicing, you can eat this as a wrap as well!
- Change It Up! Substitute your favorite deli meat, cheese or add other veggies such as bell pepper, lettuce, olives, avocado… the list is endless!
Storing + Freezing + Make-Ahead
- How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge? Once rolled, the pinwheels can be refrigerated. However, keep in mind that the longer the pinwheel sits, the tortilla can get a little mushy. I suggest no more than an hour in the refrigerator.
- Can You Freeze This? Turkey Pinwheels are meant to be eaten right away! Sorry, no freezing.
- Make-Ahead: Although the cream cheese “protects” the tortilla, the tortilla may start to get soft after a while. Make sure your deli meat is not too wet when you assemble. And, depending upon the brand of tortilla, the pinwheels may last longer stored in the refrigerator and made ahead.
- Food Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety check out this link.
Serving Recommendations
While these delicious little pinwheels are great as an easy lunch, I generally serve them on a buffet for potlucks, parties, and large family gatherings. We generally have tomato cucumber salad, marinated tomato salad, KFC coleslaw, 7 layer salad, strawberry salad or strawberry spinach salad(both with lotsa gooding + unique homemade dressings!)
Of course, without question there will be a delicious pasta salad. We love my Moms classic macaroni salad, pasta salad with Italian dressing (easy-peasy + crazy delish!), dill pickle pastas salad, chicken caesar pasta salad (loaded with chicken), our very authentic Hawaiian macaroni salad, Mediterranean pasta salad (this one will blow your mind with flavor!) or almost famous chicken pasta salad (with a light homemade lemon dressing)
Oh, and on any buffet there’s gotta be some sort of beans. We love either our BBQ baked beans, cowboy baked beans or calico beans recipe.
How To Make Turkey Pinwheels
- Spread the cream cheese over the tortilla.
- Spread the mashed cranberry sauce over cream cheese, leaving an inch border around the top half of the tortilla. Add onions.
- Arrange turkey slices over onions. Sprinkle with black pepper.
- Sprinkle cheddar cheese.
- Sprinkle chopped spinach.
- Sprinkle cooked bacon.
- Roll the tortillas. Wrap each tortilla rollups tightly in plastic wrap. Chill.
- Slice and serve.
***See the full instructions below.
More Yummy Appetizers Recipes
- Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts
- Bacon Ranch Cheese Ball
- Classic Devil Eggs
- Bisquick Sausage Balls
- Red Lobster Sausage Balls
- Garbage Bread
- Tiropita
- Classic Deviled Eggs
- BBQ Chicken Quesadilla
- Baked Jalapeño Poppers
- Doritos Sausage Balls
- Southern Egg Salad
Tried This Recipe?
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Turkey Pinwheels
Ingredients
- 6 slices uncooked bacon, diced
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened until spreadable
- 1/2 jar jellied cranberry sauce
- black pepper
- 1/2 medium red onion, slice thinly on a mandoline slicer
- 24 slices deli turkey or thinly sliced leftover turkey
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups (per your taste) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 2 cups (slightly packed when measured) baby spinach, stems removed and roughly chopped
- 8 burrito size, (10-inches) flour tortillas
Instructions
- In a 12-inch skillet, cook the diced bacon (6) until crispy. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate. Remove and reserve drippings for another use. Cool bacon.
- Lay out the tortillas (8) on a flat surface. Spread about 3 tablespoons of softened cream cheese over the surface of the tortilla, coating the entire face evenly, from edge to edge.
- Place jellied cranberry sauce in a small bowl and mash with a fork until smooth and easily spreadable with a fork.
- Spread about 3 tablespoons of mashed cranberry sauce over the cream cheese, leaving a 1-inch border, following the circular shape, around the top half of the tortilla.
- Arrange a layer of red onions over cranberry sauce, leaving 1-inch bordered as described above.
- Arrange 3-4 slices of turkey over onions, leaving the 1-inch bordered as described above. Sprinkle with black pepper.
- Arrange 3 tablespoons of shredded cheddar over turkey, leaving the 1-inch bordered as described above.
- Sprinkle chopped spinach, (hard to measure, but I use about 3-4 tablespoons), over cheddar, Leaving the 1-inch border as described above.
- Sprinkle chopped bacon (the equivalent of 1 slice) over cheddar, Leaving the 1-inch bordered as described above.
- Starting with the edge without the margin, and then roll it up as tightly as possible, tucking in the fillings as you go. Place seam side down. Continue with the remaining tortillas until all have been assembled.
- Wrap each tortilla roll ups tightly in plastic wrap. Chill the wrapped rollups in the refrigerator for 1 hour minimum or until ready to serve. To serve, trim any unfilled ends away. Slice each tortilla into 8 equal pieces.
Notes
- Gotta Have A Border! When arranging the ingredients, leave a 1-inch border around the top half of the tortilla. However. Spread the cream cheese over the entire tortilla. The cream cheese will act as the “glue” to hold the pinwheel together after rolling.
- Keep It Tightly Rolled: After rolling, wrap the tortilla in plastic wrap and refrigerate. When ready to eat, carefully slice to make the pinwheels.
- To Slice Or Not: Instead of slicing, you can eat this as a wrap as well!
- Change It Up! Substitute your favorite deli meat, cheese or add other veggies such as bell pepper, lettuce, olives, avocado… the list is endless!
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