Chicken Cranberry Salad Pinwheel Sandwiches

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Chicken Cranberry Salad Pinwheel Sandwiches are filled with chicken, almonds, cranberries, green onions, and feta, rolled up in spinach tortillas. A great appetizer for parties -- and they taste even better than they look.

Chicken Cranberry Salad Pinwheel Sandwiches on a white plate

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You’re going to love these

This is such an easy recipe to make for game days or during the holiday season. And you'll be the hit of the party because everyone loves these tortilla roll-ups!

Perfect finger food. Bring these tortilla pinwheel appetizers to your next party and see how quickly they disappear.

Super easy pinwheel sandwich recipe. Just stir the chicken cranberry salad together, spread it over flour tortillas, roll, chill, slice, and serve. That’s it.

Delicious snack. These cream cheese pinwheels aren’t just for special occasions. Everyday is a good day for pinwheel sandwiches.

Great way to use leftover rotisserie chicken. One more way to breathe new life into leftover chicken!

Ingredients

Cream cheese. Cream cheese makes the cranberry chicken salad rich and thick enough to roll up in the tortillas.

Sour cream. Sour cream adds even more tang to the cream cheese base.

Shredded chicken breast. Use finely shredded chicken so you can roll the tortillas into tight rolls.

Almonds. Almonds add a satisfying crunch to the cranberry chicken salad.

Dried cranberries. The cranberries add a bright hit of sweetness and chewy texture.

Flour tortillas. 10-inch tortillas are the perfect size for these pinwheel sandwiches.

Substitutions

Cream cheese. You can use low fat cream cheese or Neufchatel if you prefer. I use block cream cheese because it's thicker than tubbed cream cheese spread.

Sour cream. You can swap out the sour cream with low fat sour cream or Greek yogurt, just make sure any substitution you use doesn't add too much liquid. The pinwheel sandwich filling needs to be nice and thick.

Dijon mustard. Dijon adds a nice acidic tang to these pinwheel appetizers. You can use any kind of mustard you like.

Shredded chicken. Leftover turkey or ham, or crumbled bacon —- or even smashed chickpeas — would be delicious in place of the chicken.

Almonds. You can use toasted or untoasted nuts of any kind. Pecans or pine nuts would be nice, wouldn’t they?

Dried cranberries. You can use dried cherries or blueberries, if you prefer.

Green onion. Chives, shallots, red onion, or your favorite fresh herbs would be great substitutes for green onions in these sandwich pinwheels.

Feta cheese. If you’re not a fan of feta, use your favorite cheese. Cheddar cheese, Parmesan cheese, Swiss cheese, provolone cheese -- any cheese would be delicious.

Spinach tortillas. Not gonna lie, I chose the spinach tortillas 100% for the color. You can use plain or any flavor of flour tortillas -- or even a whole wheat tortilla.

Step by step Instructions

Step 1

Mix the cream cheese, sour cream, and Dijon mustard together with a hand mixer.

whipped cream cheese and sour cream in a clear bowl

Step 2

Add the chicken, almonds, cranberries, green onions, and feta cheese. Stir until combined.

Chicken, green onions, cranberries, almonds, and feta in a clear bowl

Step 3

Spread the mixture onto a tortilla, leaving a ½ inch border along the sides and top.

Chicken Cranberry Salad Pinwheel Sandwich filling spread on a spinach tortilla

Step 4

Tightly roll up the tortilla.

Chicken Cranberry Salad Pinwheel Sandwich roll on a wood cutting board

Step 5

Repeat with the remaining chicken salad and tortillas.

Step 6

Tightly wrap the tortilla roll ups in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the rolled up tortillas for several hours to allow the filling to become firm.

Chicken Cranberry Salad Pinwheel Sandwich roll wrapped in plastic

Step 7

Remove the plastic wrap and slice the tortillas with a serrated knife into pinwheel sandwiches.

a sliced Chicken Cranberry Salad Pinwheel Sandwich on a wooden cutting board

Expert Tips

Use room temperature cream cheese. Let your cream cheese come to room temperature before mixing it with the sour cream. This ensures a smooth and creamy mixture without lumps of cream cheese.

Roll your tortillas tightly. To create pinwheels that won’t fall open when you pick them up, roll your tortillas up as tightly as possible.

Wrap the rolled tortillas in plastic wrap. Plastic wrap will help the rolled tortillas hold their shape.

Chill the roll ups for a few hours. Chilling the rolled up tortillas for a few hours before slicing them gives the cream cheese a chance to firm up again. This will make it much easier to slice your pinwheels and achieve a nice round shape.

Slice with a serrated knife. Slice the pinwheels with a serrated knife to keep from flattening the tortillas rolls while you cut them.

Recipe FAQs

How far in advance can you make pinwheel sandwiches?

You can make these tortilla roll-ups up to a day in advance. Note, however, that the tortillas will absorb some moisture overnight, and they will be softer the next day. For best results, make this easy pinwheels recipe the day you will be serving them.

How do you keep pinwheels from getting soggy?

To keep your pinwheels from getting soggy, limit the moisture in the filling ingredients. For example, too much sour cream can make the cream cheese mixture too wet. Or if you add fresh fruit or vegetables, it can also add moisture to the filling.

Hand holding a Chicken Cranberry Salad Pinwheel Sandwich

Looking for more easy appetizers?

Try these fun, flavor-filled party appetizers next!

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