Pimento Cheese Pinwheels
Mar 16, 2026
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My pimento cheese pinwheels are a flavorful, bite sized appetizer that’s sure to be a hit at your next gathering. Soft tortillas are rolled up with pimento cheese and sliced into pinwheels that make a great finger food for parties, holidays, game days, and more.
One event we look forward to watching each spring is the Master’s golf tournament. When we lived in Georgia, it was the perfect excuse to invite people over and host a watch party. Of course delicious food was part of the party and these pimento cheese pinwheels were always a must make.
If you have ever watched the Masters, you probably know that pimento cheese is a bit of a tradition. It’s one of the most popular sandwiches at the tournament, so these pinwheels fit perfectly with the theme.
Even though we don’t live in Georgia anymore, it’s still my tradition to make these every year for golf season, game days, holidays, and more. They are so simple to make and full of amazing flavor.
If you want more pinwheel recipes be sure to try jalapeno popper pinwheels, cucumber pinwheels, and dill pickle pinwheels.
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Flavorful bite. Full of delicious pimento cheese flavor.
- Easy appetizer. You can put this recipe together with a few ingredients.
- Can be made ahead of time. This is a great appetizer to make ahead of time making it easy for party prep.
Ingredients
These pimento cheese pinwheels have all the best flavor of pimento cheese rolled into a bite sized snack. Make sure to soften the cream cheese before assembling the roll ups.
- Cream cheese: Softened cream cheese is the base of this recipe.
- Mayonnaise: This helps to create rich flavor and classic pimento cheese.
- Sharp cheddar cheese: Shredded sharp cheddar cheese balances well with the creamy ingredients.
- Monterey Jack cheese: Monterey jack cheese is a nice balance to the sharp cheddar.
- Pimentos: Diced pimentos add color and mild pepper flavor.
- Garlic powder and Onion powder
- Tortillas: I recommend using burrito sized flour tortillas.
How to make pimento cheese pinwheels
Scroll to the bottom for the full pimento pinwheels recipe.
Step one: Use an electric mixer and beat together the cream cheese, mayonnaise, garlic powder, and onion powder. Stir in the pimentos and cheese.
Step two: Spread the mixture on top of the tortillas. Make sure to spread the mixture out close to the edges.
Step three: Roll the tortilla as tight as possible. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.
Step four: Unwrap the plastic wrap. Cut the ends off of the tortilla rolls. Slice into half inch rounds to make the pinwheels.
Heather’s recipe tips
- Be sure to soften the cream cheese. It will make it much creamy and easier to spread.
- Freshly shred your cheese. This will give you the best flavor.
- Drain the pimentos well. Make sure to drain the pimento peppers well so that they don’t add too much liquid to the cream cheese mixture.
- Slightly warm the tortillas before rolling. After making many pinwheels, I have found that microwaving the tortillas for 5-10 seconds help to make them more pliable and easy to roll.
- Roll the tortillas tightly. Roll as tight as possible to help the pinwheels stick together.
- Chill the rolls before slicing. Chilling makes it easier to slice the pinwheels.
Variations
This pimento cheese pinwheel recipe is wonderful on it’s own but here are a few customizations you can make:
- Bacon: Add cooked, crumbled bacon to the mixture.
- Spicy: If you like your pimento cheese a little spicy, add a pinch of cayenne pepper or diced jalapeños.
- Ranch: Mix in some ranch seasoning for ranch pimento flavor.
Storage instrucions
Store any leftover pimento pinwheels in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
I don’t recommend freezing these pinwheels. They don’t thaw well.
FAQ’s
Rolling them tightly and chilling in the refrigerator will help to keep them together.
Yes, if you don’t have much time, you can use premade store bought cheese.
More pinwheel recipes
- Crack chicken pinwheels
- Strawberry pinwheels
- Club sandwich pinwheels
- BLT pinwheels
- Buffalo chicken pinwheels
- Italian pinwheels
Let me know if you make these pimento cheese pinwheels in the comments below.
Pimento Cheese Pinwheels
Ingredients
- 1 (8 ounce) cream cheese
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 cup monterey jack cheese, shredded
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 (4 ounce) jar pimentos, drained
- 3 flour tortillas burrito sized
Instructions
- Place the cream cheese, mayonnaise, garlic powder, and onion powder in a large mixing bowl. Mix together until creamy.
- Stir in the sharp cheddar cheese, monterey jack cheese, and pimentos into the cream cheese mixture.
- Spread one third of the mixture on top of one of the tortillas. Spread it out to the edges.
- Roll the tortilla up as tight as possible. Continue with the remaining ingredients.
- Wrap the rolled tortillas with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator for at least an hour.
- Unwrap the rolled tortillas. Cut off the ends of the roll. Slice into half inch pinwheels.
- Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
