Pastry Pinwheel Appetizers

So this post is going to be a 2-for-1 deal because I'm going to share TWO different versions of the same appetizer: Spinach Asiago pinwheels, AND Garlic Cheddar Pinwheels. Well, really it's like an infinite amount of different appetizers from one recipe since you can take this idea and recreate it a million different ways with all kinds of different ingredients and flavors rolled up inside of them (lots of ideas listed at the bottom of this post too).


This recipe uses puff pastry; I just use the frozen kind at the market, because it is so much easier than making it at home and doesn't taste any less than homemade. Plus you get TWO sheets of puff pastry in one box- so you can either double the recipe of your favorite flavor below, or you can make each one.


I made these for a New Year's Eve Party. Now, it's a great time to share them, though, because the Super Bowl is nearing and I think these will make a great super bowl party snack! This is one that both guys and girls like :)


Spinach-Cheese Pinwheels:

• 1 sheet Puff Pastry, THAWED (buy the frozen kind at the supermarket. They usually come in a box with 2 puff pastry sheets. But BE SURE to let yours thaw before starting this)
• 1 large Egg + 1 Tbsp Water
• 1 package Spinach (again, just buy the frozen box at the supermarket), thawed and WELL DRAINED (really squeeze all the liquid out of it)
• 3/4 cup shredded Cheese- you can use any type you like, but I used Asiago here! Some other yummy options are: Mozzarella, Gruyere, or Muenster.
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1/8 tsp Garlic Powder
• AP Flour for work surface

Garlic-Cheddar Pinwheels:

• 1 sheet Puff Pastry, THAWED (buy the frozen kind at the supermarket. They usually come in a box with 2 puff pastry sheets. But BE SURE to let yours thaw before starting this)
• 1 large Egg + 1 Tbsp Water
• 2 Tablespoons minced Garlic
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
• AP Flour for work surface

Spinach-Cheese Pinwheels:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Lay one sheet of pastry dough on a well-floured surface, and roll out using a rolling pin into a large rectangle. 

Beat together egg and water in one bowl or cup. Mix shredded cheese, grated parmesan, and garlic powder in a separate bowl. 

1. Paint egg wash onto rolled out pastry sheet. (reserve a little for later use)
2. Squeeze all liquid out of defrosted spinach. Spread evenly across the pastry sheet. 
3. Sprinkle cheese mix evenly over top of spinach layer. 

Starting at a short side of the rectangle, roll up. Seal well (use a little egg wash if you need to, in order to seal up the seam.)

Slice into 1/2 inch pinwheels (makes about 22)

*HELPFUL HINT: when I make cinnamon rolls I like to use floss to slice through the dough-y roll. HOWEVER, that does NOT work with these because the floss doesn't slice through the spinach, so it grabs it and pulls out the spinach instead. Unfortunately you have to use a sharp serrated knife and saw gently for each pinwheel. Use more back and forth motion and less pressing down motion to preserve the best shape & swirl of your pinwheels.

Lay them out onto a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Brush tops lightly with remaining egg wash (this help them maintain a glossy appearance after they've cooked)

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, or until they turn golden brown. 

Transfer to wire rack and allow to cool slightly before serving.

Garlic-Cheddar Pinwheels:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Lay one sheet of pastry dough on a well-floured surface, and roll out using a rolling pin into a large rectangle. 

Beat together egg and water in one bowl or cup. 

1. Paint egg wash on rolled out pastry sheet. (reserve a little for later use)
2. Spread minced garlic evenly across the pastry sheet. 
3. Sprinkle cheddar & parmesan evenly over top of garlic layer. 

Starting at a short side of the rectangle, roll up. Seal well (use a little egg wash if you need to, in order to seal up the seam.)

Slice into 1/2 inch pinwheels (makes about 22)

*HELPFUL HINT: when I make cinnamon rolls I like to use floss to slice through the dough-y roll. That DOES work like magic with these too! It doesn't work with spinach (as stated earlier) but 

using floss to slice the pinwheels works GREAT here.

Lay them out onto a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Brush tops lightly with remaining egg wash (this help them maintain a glossy appearance after they've cooked)

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, or until they golden.

Transfer to wire rack and allow to cool slightly before serving.

Enjoy!

. 

Other flavor ideas: 

Savory: 

-Pesto Sauce & Cheese

-Tomato sauce & Mozzarella

-Ham & Swiss

-Caramelized Onions and Gruyere

-Roasted Red Peppers & Fontina

-Sun dried Tomato, Basil, & Mozzarella

Sweet:

-Melted Chocolate

-Cinnamon & Sugar

-Honey & Walnuts

-Cream Cheese & Jam

Sweet & Savory: 

-Maple & Bacon

LEAVE A COMMENT WITH YOUR FUN IDEAS :)

Baked Spaghetti 'Pie'

This one was so much fun to make! It's like a facelift for spaghetti! It could also be a great way to use leftover noodles :)

Peter called me when he got off work and said that he had invited some friends over for dinner. This was a great quick dish to throw together. Luckily, I already had a batch of my homemade bolognese sauce, but if you're really in a rush for time you could make a quick marinara sauce, (or let's be honest- when in a real bind there is no shame in reaching for a good jar of red sauce from the market!)

In any form, this is a delicious and easy entree to whip up. Plus, isn't it so much more fun than plain old spaghetti?!!

Comments from the boys were: 

-"This is so much easier to eat than spaghetti, and it tastes better too!"; 

-"This is so good!...Megan, did I say yet how  good this is!?"; and finally- 

-"Best homemade meal I've had in a long time!"...but that was coming from the boy that just got back from a 'boys trip' in Mexico, so I don't think this one counts, Haha!

This night the three guys took down the whole thing, but I'd say it could normally serve 6 people comfortably- (not counting big hungry boys as normal people, of course)

Ingredients (makes 1 large pie; 8 slices)

• 6-8 ounces Spaghetti noodles, cooked al dente
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan Cheese, plus 1/4 cup for topping
• 2 whole Eggs
• 1 (16 oz) container of Fat Free Cottage Cheese (or you can use ricotta cheese. I opt for cottage cheese because it is healthier and tastes just as good when it's all cooked in; those who don't normally care for cottage cheese don't even know it's in here and they love it.)
• 1 heaping cup of Shredded Mozzarella, plus 1/2 cup for topping
• 1/2 batch Bolognese sauce, or Marinara Sauce, or your favorite jarred sauce.

Cook pasta 'al dente'; drain; While still hot, stir in 2 Tbsp Butter, 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese and 2 eggs; Mix well.

The cheese and butter mixed into the noodles give lots of flavor to this bottom layer of the dish; the eggs  hold it all together as it bakes so that later you will be able to cut it into nice slices without the noodles flopping all over the place. 

Lightly spray or butter your baking dish, and press noodles firmly into bottom of oven safe dish. (I use this Le Creuset pan, but you could use a casserole dish, a large pie pan, ...any oven safe baking dish)

Mix cottage cheese with 1 cup shredded Mozzarella and press firmly on top of noodles.

Layer your sauce on top of the cheese mixture. I used my homemade bolognese sauce, but you could always use a simple marinara if you are looking for a meatless entree. 

If you want to make this 'spaghetti pie' look like a 'pizza pie', you could also use a simple marinara sauce, top with mozzarella, and then top it lastly with slices of Italian sausage (or any pizza toppings for that matter) to turn this spaghetti pie into a 'spaghetti-pizza pie'! 

Top with a final covering of 1/2 c. mozzarella and 1/4 c. parmesan:

Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 45 minutes, or until your cheesey top becomes golden-brown and bubbly!!! Mmmmm...

Slice into wedges to serve. Mangia! 

Bolognese Sauce

I've posted a recipe for a quick marinara. But this is FAR different from marinara. Marinara is a simpler, thinner, tomato-based sauce (traditionally meatless, but can be optional); Bolognese is more complex, thick, chunky meat-based sauce... meat not optional. Sorry, without meat it's just not bolognese. If you don't want meat, by all means, you can always use this recipe as a tomato sauce without the meat (but then it's not bolognese), or you might opt just to make a simpler marinara.

Bolognese is most commonly served with tagliatelle noodles, which are long wide noodles- like lengths of ribbon. But this chunky meaty sauce is also good with rigatoni or any big noodle that the sauce can grab onto and be stabbed up with a fork :)

Recipe:

• 1 medium Yellow Onion, finely diced (about 1 heaping cup)
• 2-3 ribs of Celery, finely diced (about 1 cup)
• 2 Carrots, finely diced (about 1 heaping cup)
• 1 lb lean Ground Beef (at least 1 lb... bolognese is supposed to be a MEATY sauce- not a tomato sauce with a little meat in it.)
• 3 cloves Garlic, minced (about 1 Tbsp)
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 1 cup Dry Wine- I like to use red (either red or white would be fine; I've seen both used interchangeably in bolognese recipes)
• 1 (28 oz) can Whole Plum Tomatoes
• 1 (6 oz) can Tomato Paste
• 1 teaspoon Sugar, either White Granulated or Brown Sugar would be fine
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of your favorite Italian Seasoning blend 
• 1/4 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
• A dash of Nutmeg
• 1/2 cup Fat Free Half & Half (traditionally whole milk or cream, but I like to substitute the half & half)

Dice the onion, celery and carrots as small as you can. Then place them in a food processor for a few seconds to mince them even further: 

(I suppose you could try using a blender for this if you don't have a food processor? I would definitely put the carrots in the bottom if you do that though)


Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pan. Sauté all your diced veggies for about 10 minutes until soft and fragrant- about 8-10 minutes. 

Add ground beef, minced garlic and 1/2 tsp salt. Break up beef with wooden spoon and stir to brown until meat is all cooked. About 5 minutes.

Add the cup of wine and stir in, scraping the bottom of the pan. Let it come to a simmer, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes. 
Then add the can of whole tomatoes, including all liquid. 

Break up the tomatoes with your wooden spoon, and stir in the tomato paste, sugar, pepper, Italian seasonings, and nutmeg. 

Stir together well, and let it come to a bubbling simmer.

Turn the heat down, and allow to simmer for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours with no lid. Stirring occassionally to make sure it doesn't scorch on the bottom. 

*(This is why a heavy bottomed pan is important. If the pan is a thin/light material, the sauce will scorch easily onto the bottom of the pan so you would need to stir more frequently)

See how nicely it has thickened and how meaty and chunky it is:

After it has simmered and all the flavors have condensed together, turn off the heat and stir in the 1/2 cup of FF half & half. This gives it some rich, creamy depth and makes it a little more sauce-y again :)

Some Alteration Options:

• Tomato: If you want your sauce a little more tomatoey, you can add another can of whole tomatoes, either a 14.5 oz can or another 28 oz can -depending on your preference, with its liquid. This would, however, require some additional simmering time. Or you can add a can of crushed tomatoes with your whole tomatoes.
• Cream: If you want your sauce a little more saucey and/or creamy without adding too much tomato (to keep with the traditional bolognese fashion of little tomato), you can stir in more half and half (or whole milk or cream) at the end instead of just 1/2 cup. 
• Meat: Traditionally, Bolognese uses chunks of Skirt Steak and pancetta so you can always go that route. I use lean ground beef to make it slightly healthier (and easier). Or you could make it even healthier by using lean ground Turkey. So now you've got the whole spectrum of meats to choose from.
• Consistency: If you would like to make it a little more loose and saucey without adding extra tomatoes or cream, you can add a cup or so of beef stock before it simmers. This will definitely give more depth to the sauce while lightening up the consistency, and without diluting or adulterating the traditional flavors.