Recipe
Pretty Party Pinwheels
Print or online media may reprint this excerpt with the following attribution: “Excerpted from Party Snacks!, by A.J. Rathbun, © 2008, and used by permission of The Harvard Common Press.”
Pretty Party Pinwheels
Don’t doubt my party credentials, but for years I called these “rapid roll-ups”—until my snack-happy pal Shane Farmer clued me in to their proper name: pinwheels. Often, you’ll see pinwheels stuffed with sour cream, or refried beans, or salsa, or any number of ingredients. I suggest sticking with a spiced cream cheese for the stuffing instead of trying to work in too many layers. When pinwheels get overpacked, or packed with sloppier ingredients, they leak onto the party platter. And that’s not pretty at all.
Makes about 70 pinwheels
2 jalapeño chiles, quartered (leave the seeds in if you like it hotter)
4 green onions, coarsely chopped
Two 8-ounce packages cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 of a 0.4-ounce package ranch dressing mix
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
10 large flour tortillas
5 cups loosely packed fresh spinach, washed and dried
5 to 7 Roma tomatoes, seeded and very thinly sliced
Salsa or Louisiana-style hot sauce, for serving
1. Put the jalapeños and onions in a food processor, and process for 3 to 5 seconds, until well chopped. Add the cream cheese, dressing mix, and pepper, and process again until all is well mixed.
2. Using a spatula or butter knife, spread the mixture evenly over one side of each flour tortilla. Arrange 1/2 cup spinach and a few tomato slices on top of the mixture on each tortilla.
3. Roll up each tortilla, making a tight roll. Once all are rolled and stacked on a plate, cover with plastic wrap or foil and put them in the fridge to chill for about an hour.
4. Using a sharp chef’s knife, slice each rolled tortilla into 1/2-inch-thick rounds. Arrange attractively on a serving platter. Serve with salsa or Louisiana-style hot sauce on the side.
