Vegan Spinach Pinwheels
These Vegan Spinach Cheese Pinwheels make a delicious, cheesy appetizer perfect for a party or any occasion. It’s another one of those recipes that will have your guests doing a double-take when you tell them it’s vegan. Who would have thought something with such a buttery, cheesy taste could be?
Spinach pinwheels are a perfect appetizer. They’re easy to make, and everyone loves them. Seriously. I have yet to find someone who eats these who doesn’t love them.
Keep some frozen spinach and puff pastry in your freezer until you’re ready to make your vegan spinach pinwheels!
Key Ingredients
You can find the full printable recipe, including ingredient quantities, below. But first, here are some explanations of ingredients and steps to help you make this recipe perfect every time.
Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe, including substitution ideas:
- Vegan butter — Use your favorite dairy-free butter, whether it be buttery sticks or in a tub.
- Plant-based milk — Use your favorite, but make sure it’s unsweetened and non-vanilla flavored (plain is best).
- Vegan mozzarella — Use your favorite vegan mozzarella shreds, like Daiya or Follow Your Heart.
- Vegan parmesan cheese — You can find vegan parmesan at various stores these days, or you can make homemade vegan parmesan. You can substitute nutritional yeast flakes.
- Green onions — You’ll need 2 to 3 stalks of green onions, depending on how thick they are (more stalks if they’re smaller).
- Seasoning — We’ll use garlic powder and salt for flavor.
- Puff pastry — I use Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry because it’s accidentally vegan.
- Frozen spinach — You’ll need one 10 oz package of frozen chopped spinach.
What is Vegan Puff Pastry?
Puff pastry is a laminated dough (thin layers of dough separated by butter, created by folding the dough multiple times) that creates fluffy, flaky pastries. Imagine the flakiness of croissants in pastry form. That’s what puff pastry offers. You can find vegan puff pastry sold in most supermarkets. It’s what I refer to as accidentally vegan. Or you can use my pastry recipe from this vegan danish to create your own pastry dough.
Storage Tips
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge. These pinwheels are best freshly-baked, so to create that same experience with reheating, avoid the microwave and heat them in a toaster oven or oven at 300°F/150°C for 5 minutes until heated through and the pastry is crispy again.
Serving Suggestions
These spinach pinwheels are delicious as is, but here are some sauce ideas you can serve alongside them for dipping or complementary dips:
What Makes This Recipe Shine?
- EASY — Storebought puff pastry creates a buttery light crust that’s easy to make.
- FLAVORFUL — Adding garlic and vegan cheese creates a delicious flavor.
- PERFECT TEXTURE — Pressing frozen spinach removes excess liquid, creating a colorful filling with mellow spinach flavor.
Make-Ahead Tips
You can prepare the dough, cut it into slices, transfer the slices to an airtight container, and refrigerate up to overnight. Then, pop them in the oven before your event and serve them warm.
Reader Reviews
★★★★★
Patty
These were delicious! I just made them as a new years breakfast and we loved it!
Frequently-Asked Questions
Can you freeze puff pastry pinwheels?
You can freeze pinwheels made from puff pastry. Once they’ve baked and cooled, transfer them to a freezer-safe container or bag and freeze them for up to 2 months. To reheat transfer frozen pinwheels to a toaster oven or oven and heat at 300°F for up to 10 minutes until heated through and crispy.
Can puff pastry appetizers be made ahead of time?
You can make puff pastry appetizers ahead of time by preparing the recipe up to the point of baking them. Transfer the unbaked sliced pinwheels to a freezer-safe bag and freeze them in a single layer. They can be frozen for up to 2 months. When you’re ready to serve, transfer frozen pinwheels to a pan lined with parchment paper. Then heat your oven and follow the recipe instructions for baking.
How long does it take puff pastry to thaw?
It takes around 6 to 8 hours for frozen puff pastry to thaw. To do this, transfer it to the fridge overnight, and it will be ready to go in the morning.
Vegan Appetizers
Throwing a party? You can make these vegan spinach pinwheels and wow your guests! Here are even more delicious vegan party foods:
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Vegan Pinwheels Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegan butter
- 1 tablespoon plant-based milk
- ½ cup vegan mozzarella shreds
- ¼ cup vegan parmesan cheese (or nutritional yeast flakes)
- 2 tablespoons chopped green onions
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 sheet puff pastry (see note)
- 10 oz package frozen chopped spinach thawed and drained
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F/200°C. Prepare a baking sheet by covering it with a sheet of parchment paper.
- Place the vegan butter in a small bowl and microwave until it's mostly melted. Add the vegan milk and stir it together. Set aside to cool slightly.
- Stir together the shredded vegan cheese, vegan parmesan (or nutritional yeast flakes), chopped onions, garlic powder, and salt.
- Prepare a work area by sprinkling it with flour. Lay out the prepared pastry sheet on the floured surface.
- Brush the melted butter mixture over the pastry sheet, reserving some for the slices.
- Spread the cheese mixture evenly over the buttered pastry sheet.
- Place thawed frozen spinach in a kitchen towel or paper towels and wrap tightly. Stand over the sink or a bowl and squeeze the towel to drain as much liquid from the spinach as possible.
- Spread the spinach over the cheese mixture.
- Begin at the side closest to you, roll the pastry sheet like you would roll cinnamon rolls.
- Use a serrated knife to cut 1/2-inch slices. Place sliced pieces on the prepared pan about an inch or more apart.
- Brush the slices with the reserved butter mixture.
- Place in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the pinwheels are golden brown on the edges.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before serving warm.
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Notes
The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
This post was originally published in 2013 and was updated to include new photos, new text, and an updated recipe in 2021.
Can these be served at room temperature or will it affect the taste?
I think they are best warm, but I have served them at room temperature and they were still very tasty!
These were delicious! I just made them as a new years breakfast and we loved it! Also, referring to the comment about Pepperidge Farm pastry sheets, I do not see milk in the ingredients. Could’ve changed since the comment was posted, but looks vegan to me. Thanks for the recipe & happy new year!
Hi Patty. I’m so glad you liked these vegan pinwheels. Happy new year to you too!
If we were to make these for non vegans would they turn out the same if we replaced the vegan ingredients with non vegan?
Hi Megan. Thanks for your comment. I’m sure it would turn out fine with non-vegan ingredients. You can find puff pastry in most stores which makes this recipe much easier. However, I find vegan cream cheese, especially Tofutti, to be pretty good. It might be worth a try. Let me know how it goes!
How much of this do you think I could do in advance? I want to make these for a BBQ tomorrow but really don’t want to do all of the work tomorrow morning.
Hi Brianna. If you wanted to make these quickly you might want to buy the pastry at the store, but just know that it’s not easy to find it vegan. I thought they were vegan originally, but come to find out there is some slight amount of animal product in it. Otherwise, you can follow the recipe to make the dough and that’s the part you could make the day before. Hope you have a great time at your BBQ!
Looks really yummie and a perfect snack for the oscar’s!
These look really delicious! Now..I hate to be a party pooper, but I’m pretty sure that the Pepperidge Farm puff pastry sheets aren’t vegan.I looked up the ingredients and they contain milk.
Thank you so much for your comment. I always try to be so careful when I buy products, but sometimes I swear I need to bring along a magnifying glass to the grocery store with me because the ingredients can be printed in 3 point font! Thanks for bringing this error to my attention. You were right – that product I had previously listed here was not vegan. I have removed it and have replaced it with a link to a vegan recipe for puff pastry. Of course, that said, I will definitely remake this recipe and will add photos so everyone can see the truly vegan version.
Thanks again for your comment. It’s great when we can help each other out like that!
Marly
I really enjoyed your story, made me smile! Thanks and the rolls look good too!
Ah, thank you, Sarah! I like making people smile. And just so you know…your comment made me smile too!
I love how food has the ability to take us back to particular a moment in time. These pinwheels definitely need to make an appearance at our next party (I’m too afraid I’d eat the whole batch myself if I were to make them on a random afternoon without a crowd to share them with)!
I agree! Parties are a necessity when making things that are too tempting. We could start something called the Party Diet!