Pinwheel Christmas Tree Appetizer: Tortilla pinwheels filled with a festive savory cream cheese filling are shaped like a Christmas tree in this no-bake appetizer that is perfect for holiday parties and Christmas Eve nibbling!
It’s time to ring in the holiday season with parties, entertaining, and time with family and friends! That means you’ll need “go to” Christmas appetizer recipes like the one I’m sharing with you today, and this BEST bruschetta, air fried pigs in a blanket, and bacon-wrapped dates.
Or, if you want another Christmas tree idea, even this Christmas Tree Charcuterie Board!
P.S. If you haven’t made these Spicy Ranch Crackers, you are definitely going to want to! It’s one of my favorite appetizers.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This red and green appetizer has Christmas written all over it! Green tortillas, red peppers, green olives, bright red cherry tomatoes and vibrant green herbs definitely bring in the festive colors of Christmas! It’s a fun twist on our pinwheel sandwiches recipe, in Christmas form!
The Christmas tree shape is easy to create and really adds a ton of Christmas charm to any appetizer spread.
It’s a no bake appetizer recipe! No oven and no cooking time means this appetizer can be whipped up in no time before that holiday party.
Can I make pinwheels the day before? The answer is yes! Pinwheels are the perfect appetizers to be prepped ahead of time. I actually think the cream cheese filling tastes even more flavorful with a little time to sit.
Jump to:
Ingredients
With simple ingredients and no baking or cooking required, I think this is the perfect Christmas appetizer for every holiday party.
- 2 blocks (16 oz.) cream cheese, softened and brought to room temperature
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- ¼ cup green olives, sliced
- ¼ cup black olives, sliced
- ¼ red peppers, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh dill, minced
- 4 large tortillas – 2 plain and 2 green tortillas (spinach)
- Fresh rosemary for garnish
- Cherry tomatoes for garnish
- Decorative holiday picks for serving (optional)
See the printable recipe card below for detailed instructions, nutrition information and detailed notes.
Instructions
Here are step-by-step instructions -with pictures! – so you can easily make this holiday appetizer at home!
- First, chop the red pepper into small pieces and slice the olives, if necessary.
- Now, in a large mixing bowl, add the cream cheese, garlic powder, onion powder and lemon juice. Blend with hand mixer until the cream cheese mixture is smooth with no lumps.
- Once combined, use a spatula or spoon to fold in the fresh dill, olives and chopped peppers.
- Next, place a tortilla on a flat working surface (like your countertop or a large baking sheet) and using an offset spatula, spread about ½ cup of the cream cheese mixture onto the tortilla. Spread the mixture just to the edge of the tortilla.
- Roll up the tortilla and wrap it tightly with plastic wrap. Repeat for all 4 tortillas. Chill them in the freezer for 30 minutes, then cut each rolled tortilla into eight ¾-inch slices.
- Arrange the pinwheel slices into the shape of a tree on your favorite festive serving platter, plate or wooden board. Garnish the tree with sprigs of fresh rosemary, cherry tomato “ornaments” and decorative holiday picks for serving.
Substitutions
What are pinwheel snacks made of? Typically, pinwheels are made by spreading a soft cheese based filling on a tortilla, rolling it up and cutting it into the classic pinwheel slices. It’s like your favorite cheese ball spread on a soft tortilla!
Here are a few ways to adjust this basic recipe to your personal preferences:
- We love the creaminess and richness of full fat cream cheese, but you can use light cream cheese or fat free cream cheese if you prefer.
- You can easily make this festive appetizer gluten-free by using gluten-free tortillas.
- Instead of the red bell peppers, you can use diced green peppers or drained pimentos to keep the festive red and green colors in the cream cheese mixture.
Variations
We love it when you make the easy recipes here at Fantabulosity! If you want to get creative, we’re sharing a few of our favorite ways to do just that:
- Add your favorite savory flavors to the cream cheese mixture. Crispy chopped bacon, green onions, shredded sharp cheddar or Parmesan cheese, chopped and drained artichoke hearts and toasted chopped pecans are great ways to add different flavors to this pinwheel appetizer.
- Use all green tortillas. We used a mix of regular flour tortillas and green spinach tortillas, but this Christmas tree appetizer would look great using all green pinwheels.
- Make festive garnishes. Use a small cookie cutter (either a star or a small ornament) to cut decorative shapes out of thick sliced cheese. Place a large star shaped garnish at the top of the tree. Fresh herbs like springs of dill, thyme and rosemary add a pop of color to your serving platter.
Storage
Store any leftover pinwheels in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Top Tip
This holiday appetizer idea is the perfect start to a Christmas charcuterie board! Surround this pinwheel tree with bowls of nuts, dried fruit, honey and fruit spread, cranberry sauce, marinated olives, crackers, sliced salami, hummus, and veggies.
Did you make this? I’d be so grateful if you left a “star” rating below to let me know what you thought! Then, the next time you need a quick and easy recipe, come back to Fantabulosity to browse all of my easy recipes!
Recipe
Pinwheel Christmas Tree Appetizer
Ingredients
- 16 oz cream cheese (2 blocks) room temperature
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- ¼ cup green olives sliced
- ¼ cup black olives sliced
- ¼ cup red peppers finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh dill minced
- 4 large tortillas 2 plain and 2 green (spinach)
- fresh rosemary for garnish
- cherry tomatoes for garnish
- Decorative holiday picks optional for serving
Instructions
- First, chop the peppers and slice the olives if necessary.
- Now, in a large bowl, add the cream cheese, garlic powder, onion powder and lemon juice. Blend with a hand mixer until the cream cheese mixture is smooth with no lumps.
- Once combined, use a spatular or spoon to fold in the fresh dill, green and black olives and the red peppers.
- Next, place a tortilla on a flat surface and using an offset spatula, spread about ½ cup of the cream cheese mixture onto the tortilla. Spread the mixture just to the edge of the tortilla.
- Roll up the tortilla and wrap it tightly with plastic wrap. Repeat for all 4 tortillas. Chill them in the freezer for 30 minutes and cut each rolled tortilla into ¾-inch slices.
- Arrange the pinwheel slices into the shape of a Christmas tree on your favorite festive platter or wooden serving board. Garnish the tree with springs of fresh rosemary, cherry tomato "ornaments" and decorative holiday picks for serving.
Notes
- You can make the Christmas Tree Pinwheels ahead of time! Placed the finished rolled tortillas in the refrigerator and slice them just before plating and serving.
- To make these pinwheels gluten free, chose gluten-free tortillas from your local grocery store.
- You can use your favorite kind of olives (kalamata, garlic or blue cheese stuffed olives, marinated olives) in place of the traditional green and black olives.
- Similarly, you can use drained jarred pimientos to replace the red peppers we used.
- Store any leftover pinwheels in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
Tammy says
I just made one as a test run for a holiday party. They were delicious! I used fire roasted peppers in the jar because I realized I didn’t have a pepper. lol. How far in advance can I make these and refrigerate before serving them? I need apps to pre prep. Thanks.
Jessica says
In the post, it mentions how making them a day ahead of time works great, and even allows the flavors to incorporate more! Anymore than a day though, I’m not quite sure, as I haven’t tested that just yet. I hope that helps!
Leslie says
I posted a comment yesterday, but but looks like it was deleted…so I’m posting these questions again.
1. In the photo’s , it looks like the bowls containing the chopped peppers, & olives have about 1/2 c. instead of the 1/4 c. that is listed in the ingredients…am I correct?
2. How did you get the pinwheels to be circle shapes after slicing? I did a test run, & mine came out more like oblong! But they were still delish!
Jessica says
Hi Leslie. Your comment wasn’t deleted. It was pending “approval” and you should see it now. 🙂 It should be about 1/4 cup but this can be flexible.
When slicing, I’d make sure your knife is very sharp, or if you push down too hard, it can make them more oval. Or you could try gently pushing in the sides, to make them more round instead of oval. I hope that helps.
Leslie says
Thank you for your response, & tips!
Leslie says
A few questions..
1. Looks like in the pictures of the bowls of chopped up red pepper & olives, looks like that is more than 1/4 cup, more like 1/2 c. Am I correct?
2. With spreading 1/2 c. of the cream cheese mixture, onto the tortilla, there was still not enough in the center of the tortilla. Thinking I need to add more than 1/2 c. Your picture looks so even with the cream mixture! Any tips?
3. How did you get the slices, after frozen, to be in a circle shape? I did a test run, & mine were more an oval shape after slicing.
Looking forward for your suggestions!
Julia says
I make a pinwheel christmas tree every single year! So festive and super easy! Thanks for the easy recipe!
Journa Liz Ramirez says
This is such a fun idea! The kids are excited to try this!
Abby says
This was cute. delicious and easy way to bring festivity to a party! Everyone loved it.