This recipe for Mexican tortilla pinwheels is two types of cheese, black beans and colorful veggies all rolled up inside tortillas and cut into rounds. The perfect make-ahead snack or appetizer!

Pinwheel sandwiches are the hit of any party, I often serve taco pinwheels, turkey pinwheels, or these fun and festive Mexican style pinwheels.

Mexican tortilla pinwheels with cheese, beans, bell peppers and cilantro.

A while ago I made these rainbow veggie pinwheels and they’ve turned out to be one of the most popular recipes on this site! They’ve been on tons of websites (most recently Redbook magazine!), been pinned hundreds of thousands of times and have been the featured recipe in kids cooking classes around the country. It’s been really fun to see the outpouring of positive feedback. I decided it was high time I made another pinwheel recipe which is how these Mexican tortilla pinwheels were born.

Tortilla pinwheels with a filling of cream cheese, black beans, bell peppers and seasonings.

How do you make tortilla pinwheel sandwiches?

These Mexican tortilla pinwheels start with extra large tortillas. I went with green spinach tortillas simply for the fun color, if you can’t find them, regular tortillas work just as fine. I make a zesty cheese spread with cream cheese, chili powder and cheddar cheese which is spread on top of the tortillas. Next comes black beans and finely diced bell peppers. I used red, orange and yellow bell peppers because of the multi-color factor, I’ve found my kids are more willing to eat their vegetables if they are bright and appealing. You can absolutely use just one color bell pepper, but I would avoid green bell peppers in this recipe because they tend to be a little bitter.

Mexican pinwheel sandwiches with cheese, beans, colored bell peppers and seasonings.

After all of the toppings are on the tortillas, I roll them up tightly and slice them into pinwheels. I like to garnish the top with more chopped bell pepper, black beans and a sprinkling of cilantro. You could also serve these pinwheels with a side of salsa for dipping.

A board full of Mexican tortilla pinwheels garnished with peppers and black beans.

One of the great things about this snack is that it’s easy to put together and can be made ahead of time for stress free entertaining. I even serve these tortilla pinwheels as a light lunch with a side salad. Regardless of how you serve these Mexican tortilla pinwheels, they’re sure to be a crowd pleaser!

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4.95 from 20 votes

Mexican Tortilla Pinwheels

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AuthorSara Welch

This recipe for Mexican tortilla pinwheels is two types of cheese, black beans and colorful veggies all rolled up inside tortillas and cut into rounds. The perfect make-ahead snack or appetizer!

Time

Prep Time10

Cook Time1

Total Time10

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Mexican

Serves servings

Ingredients

▢ 4 large spinach or regular tortillas burrito size
▢ 8 ounces of cream cheese softened
▢ 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
▢ 1 teaspoon of chili powder or more to taste
▢ 1 cup of canned black beans drained and rinsed, plus more for garnish
▢ 1 cup of finely chopped red orange and/or yellow bell pepper, plus more for garnish
▢ 1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro

Instructions

In a bowl mix together the cream cheese, cheddar cheese and chili powder. You can add additional chili powder to taste if you like more of a kick.
Spread the cream cheese over the entire surface of each tortilla.
Sprinkle 1/4 cup of black beans and 1/4 cup of bell pepper on one end of each tortilla.
Roll up the tortillas tightly. You can add a dab of cream cheese on the end to hold the rolls together if needed.
Slice the tortilla rolls crosswise into pinwheels.
Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 8 hours prior to serving. Serve sprinkled with cilantro and additional black beans and bell pepper if desired.