This recipe tops my list of all-time favorite dinner party appetizers. My mom found the recipe for these amazing little spiral creations in a vegetarian cookbook (i.e. Vegetarian Appetizers: Simply Delicious Recipes for Easy Entertaining by Paulette Mitchell) years ago and we’ve been making them for guests ever since. The pinwheels are so easy to make it’s bordering on ridiculous. More importantly, the flavor combination of sweet mango, smokey roasted peppers, and creamy chipotle cheese is not just good, it’s addicting. We tripled this for my mom’s birthday bash and 45 minutes into the party the serving platter was void of a single crumb and guests were lining up for the recipe. This one is perfect for holiday season celebrations. By using spinach and red pepper tortillas, you can even add some festive flare to the presentation.
Mango, Roasted Pepper, and Chipotle Cream Cheese Tortilla Pinwheels (Makes 16 slices)
Adapted from Vegetarian Appetizers: Simply Delicious Recipes for Easy Entertaining by Paulette Mitchell
Chipotle Spread
1/2 cup cream cheese at room temperature
1 tbsp fresh orange juice
1 tbsp minced fresh chives or green onion (green part only)
2 tsp minced, soaked, and drained chipotle chile, or to taste
Tortilla Rolls
2 10-inch flour tortillas
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 roasted red bell pepper, cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch-wide strips
1/2 mango, cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch-wide strips
1. Make the chipotle spread by mixing together all the spread ingredients in a small bowl until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning.
2. To assemble the tortilla rolls: spread 1 tortilla with half of the chipotle spread. Sprinkle with half of the cilantro leaves. Starting about 1 inch up from the bottom of the tortilla, arrange 1 row of the bell pepper strips and another of the mango strips, keeping the ingredients in the bottom third of the tortilla. Fold the bottom of the tortilla over the filling, then firmly roll away from you. Repeat with the second tortilla. Wrap the rolls in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
3. Unwrap the rolls and trim to even the ends. Using a serrated knife in a sawing motion, cut each roll into eight 1-inch-thick slices.
4. Arrange the slices on a platter.
Amazing recipe, thank you!
i am going to try this out at a baby shower. it will be a blast
A friend made these for a reception last year, and we loved them. Now we’re making them for our daughter’s wedding. We could only find canned chipotle peppers locally. In our test run we opened a 7 oz. can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, rinsed one off, and used less than 2 tsp. They were still kickin’! Delicious! One can will easily make this recipe many times over.
Hi, Amy! I’m so happy to hear you’re enjoying the pinwheels and even making them for your daughter’s wedding! I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve made these, but they’re always a crowd-pleaser and are so easy to throw together in a pinch. The peppers really do add a kick, don’t they? Just a touch is all you need :)
Can you make these a day ahead? Or will they get soggy?
Hi, Danielle! I don’t recommend assembling them ahead of time, but I like to prep/chop everything and assemble the day I’ll be serving them. Then I usually fill and roll them a few hours ahead of time and slice them just before plating. I hope this helps!