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This baked ham and cheese pinwheels recipe is perfect for a party or even a speedy weeknight meal. Learn how to make ham and cheese puff pastry for a great appetizer, lunch, or dinner.
Flaky and buttery puff pastry pairs with creamy cheese and salty ham for the easiest meal ever! These baked ham and cheese pinwheels are so simple but taste like you spent hours on them.
Once you fall in love with this recipe, check out these other puff pastry recipes like puff pastry cinnamon rolls, puff pastry turkey pot pie, puff pastry pizza pockets, baked brie with garlic, puff pastry quiche, or puff pastry apple pie.
Ham and Cheese Pinwheels Ingredients & Variations
This recipe is rocking:
- Puff pastry – you can find it in the freezer section of the grocery store, usually near the frozen pies/desserts.
- Ham – thinly sliced; either from the deli or leftover from an Instant Pot ham or another holiday cut.
- Cheese – sliced Swiss and grated smoked cheddar.
- Mustard – stoneground is my favorite here, but you do you.
- Butter – salted or unsalted works great here.
- Worcestershire sauce
- Seasonings – poppy seeds, onion powder, and garlic powder.
Ingredient Variations
- Puff Pastry – if you can’t find it, you can sub in two 8 oz boxes/tubes of refrigerated crescent dough. The final product won’t be as fluffy as the puff pastry but it will still be delicious.
- Cheese – I love the taste of smoked cheddar here, but smoked gouda, gruyere, Monterey jack, fontina, or an extra sharp cheddar would all be delightful.
- Mustard – don’t like it? Leave it out! Sub in a favorite spread or just place the cheese directly on the puff pastry.
- Worcestershire – use a vegetarian brand like this if you don’t eat meat. Need it to be gluten-free? This brand is both gluten-free and vegan.
Can I Make Pinwheels the Day Before?
Absolutely! You have two options – 1) bake them ahead of time and then reheat them before you serve them. Reheat in a 350F oven for 5-10 minutes.
Or, 2) you can assemble, roll, cut them, and store them unbaked in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 24 hours. Bake them directly from the fridge according to the instructions in the printable recipe card below.
How to Freeze Ham and Cheese Pinwheels
If you want to have a grab-and-go meal ready to heat, freezing the pinwheels are a great idea! You can freeze them already baked and then reheat them in a 350F oven for 5-10 minutes.
If you want to freeze them unbaked, assemble them according to the instructions below, and then freeze them on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 2 hours. Transfer to freezer-safe storage for 1-3 months.
To make unbaked rolls from frozen: allow them to thaw for an hour at room temperature or overnight in the fridge. Bake according to the printable recipe card below.
Storage and Reheating
Allow leftover ham and cheese roll-ups to fully cool before storing them in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. You can reheat in a 350F oven for 5-10 minutes, in the microwave for 30 seconds, or in an air fryer for 3 minutes at 340F.
Using the air fryer is my favorite method because it’s fast and gives you the same results as the oven in half the time. The microwave can make the puff pastry a bit soggy but it will be fine if that is your only option.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- Check the directions on the box of your puff pastry to confirm the thawing time. Some brands only recommend 20 minutes and others recommend up to 1+ hours.
- Puff pastry does not “rise” like pizza or bread dough. Before it goes into the oven, it will look flat. As it bakes the pastry will “puff” up. It is a perfectly named product!
- Sliced Swiss cheese is very pliable, but if you choose to use slices of other cheese, it will likely be harder to roll everything properly. That’s why I recommend grating the cheddar. If you have to use slices, roll carefully and slowly so as to not tear the delicate puff pastry.
More Tasty Recipes You’ll Love
Ham and Cheese Pinwheels
Ingredients
- 2 sheets puff pastry {from 1, 17 oz box}
- cooking spray or butter for pan
- all-purpose flour for working with the puff pastry
- 1/3 cup stone ground mustard {optional. Leave off if mustard is not your jam}
- 8-12 slices Swiss cheese
- 18-24 slices thin ham
- 2 cups grated smoked cheddar {sub in grated extra sharp cheddar, smoked gouda, smoked gruyere, etc.}
Butter topping
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1.5 tsp poppy seeds
- 1.5 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- Follow thawing times on the puff pastry box (anywhere from 20-120 minutes depending on the brand).2 sheets puff pastry
- Spray cooking spray or butter a 9×13 baking dish. Set aside.cooking spray or butter for pan
- Preheat oven to 400F.
- On a lightly floured surface, unfold each sheet of puff pastry.2 sheets puff pastry, all-purpose flour for working with the puff pastry
- Spread 3 tbsp of mustard on each sheet of puff pastry.1/3 cup stone ground mustard
- On each sheet of puff pastry, layer half of the total sliced Swiss cheese and half of the total thinly sliced ham on top of the mustard. Top with half of the total shredded cheese.8-12 slices Swiss cheese, 18-24 slices thin ham, 2 cups grated smoked cheddar
- Starting with the long edge of the pastry furthest from you, gently roll the dough towards you until you have a solid roll.
- Cut each tube into 6 rolls {~1.5 inches wide}. Pro tip: using a bread knife (aka serrated knife) will create the cleanest cuts.
- Place the rolls in the baking dish so they are close together but not crowded.
- In a microwave-safe bowl, melt butter.1/4 cup unsalted butter
- Add: poppy seeds, onion powder, garlic powder, and Worcestershire sauce. Whisk with a fork to combine.1.5 tsp poppy seeds, 1.5 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- Using a pastry brush, brush the butter mixture over the top of the rolls.
- Bake on the middle rack at 400F for 25-28 minutes or until the pastry has doubled in size and the tops have browned.
- Allow the rolls to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
- I give a range for the amount of Swiss cheese and ham needed because puff pastry sheets can be different sizes.
- Puff pastry does not “rise” like pizza or bread dough. Before it goes into the oven, it will look flat. As it bakes the pastry will “puff” up.
- Sliced Swiss cheese is very pliable, but if you use slices of other cheese, it will likely be harder to roll everything properly. If you have to use slices, roll carefully and slowly so as to not tear the delicate puff pastry
- If the pastry becomes too warm and sticky during the rolling process, refrigerate the roll or cut rolls for 20-30 minutes prior to baking. Puff pastry that is too warm, will often “fall” as it bakes instead of puffing up.
- Allow leftover ham and cheese roll-ups to fully cool before storing them in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. You can reheat in a 350F oven for 5-10 minutes, in the microwave for 30 seconds, or in an air fryer for 3 minutes at 340F.
- Nutrition values are an estimate only
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Made these for dinner tonight and it was so easy! Omitted the poppy seeds in the topping because my husband works for the government and always thinks he will test positive for opioids in a random drug test. He had to shoo 3 vultures, I mean kids, away from the stove so he would have leftovers to take to work tomorrow. This is definitely getting added to our recipe binder!
I was just joking about poppy seeds with a friend who got a new job and had to do a bunch of testing as part of the hiring process. With all of today’s technology, I’m shocked they can’t isolate the poppy seed results in a test.
Thanks for taking the time to leave a review. Tell the vultures I’ll have another puff pastry recipe for them in a few weeks. 🙂
Got rid of my leftover Easter ham with this recipe tonight, and it was delicious! I don’t know if it was the puff pastry (Publix GreenWise was on sale) or my oven, but mine took almost 50 minutes to get browned and crispy.Â
Is there a recipe for something else on the box (usually a dessert or something)? Can you check the cooking time for that to see what they recommend? I’ve found baking times (and thawing) on puff pastry can vary wildly. And I have no idea why!
Made these for dinner. Ate the first one, looked at my husband and said ‘you know what this tastes like? Another one’. Light. Fluffy. Delicious.Â