If you are ever invited to my place for dinner, I can assure you one of the items on the menu is going to be these pizza pinwheels!
They are so simple, yet everybody loves them and they are a sure winner amongst kids and grown-ups alike!
This is a classic example of what in Italy we call "stuzzichini" (i.e. appetisers) which would be part of our aperitivo. An aperitivo is a pre-meal drink; the experience of aperitivo is a cultural ritual. Derived from the Latin aperire, the tradition is meant “to open” the stomach before dining.
In recent years, the trend of aperi-cena has spread throughout Italy. In big cities, bars compete to get the crown of best post-work aperitivo place. People order a drink - Aperol/Campari Spritz, Negroni or simply wine are some of the most popular - and along with it, the bar will offer a free flow of small bites. The competition is so high, that the amount of free food can count as a "cena" (lit. dinner), hence the term aperi-cena!
But back to our pizza pinwheels.
For these I used Baby Roma Tomato Passata by Mutti - baby Roma tomatoes are sweet and delicate and the sauce is very smooth and quite thick...works perfectly for these little pizzas, as a sauce that is either watery or chunky would make your pinwheels difficult to roll.
Have a go and let me know what you think!
Ingredients (for 4 as an appetiser)
1 sheet ready rolled rectangular puff pastry
A few tablespoons of tomato passata or tomato sauce
A generous amount of grated parmigiano reggiano or pecorino cheese
Method
Defrost your puff pastry (if frozen).
Roll out the puff pastry on a sheet of parchment paper and spread the tomato passata over the entire surface using a spatula or the back of a spoon, then roll the pastry on itself to obtain a tight roll.
Wrap the roll in its parchment paper and place in the freezer for an hour, so that it partially freezes. This way it will be easier to cut the wheels without them losing their shape.
Take out the roll from the freezer and cut it into 6-8 mm thick pinwheels, then place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake in a preheated oven in static mode at 180 ° C for about 15- 20 minutes.
Allow them to cool (if you can resist).
Buon appetito!
Word of the Day
Pasta Sfoglia
(Puff pastry, pronounced pà·sta sfoːʎʎa)
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