Vegan Pizza Pinwheels
Vegan pizza pinwheels are spiral-rolled bites of pizza dough filled with pizza sauce, dried herbs and vegan cheese, then sliced and baked until golden. They deliver all the flavor of a classic pizza in a portable, snackable shape, and you can have them on the table in under 30 minutes. They are the perfect answer to a busy week when you want comfort food without fuss.
Sometimes we are in a rush, having a very busy week, or simply not in the mood for those lengthy, pretentious recipes. Moderation is the key to success, so it is perfectly OK to sometimes just relax and have a more laid-back attitude in the kitchen. And I really mean it when I say these are super fast: I bet you could get things done in less than 30 minutes! The thing I really love about the vegan pizza pinwheels is that they are perfect for any occasion. Tonight I am hosting a movie evening with my friends, and the batch I will bake today will be what I serve my guests — already divided into portions, filling but also snacky. I am sure everyone will be delighted.
What you need to make pizza pinwheels
This is a short ingredient list, and that is the whole point. You will need one store-bought pizza dough (thawed if frozen), one cup of pizza sauce, one cup of vegan cheese chopped into small cubes, a tablespoon of Italian seasoning (basil, oregano and rosemary), and a couple of tablespoons of hot sauce for serving. A few notes from my kitchen: for a better taste and quality, I would recommend using homemade tomato sauce rather than a jarred one. Pick a vegan cheese that melts well and is soft enough to cube, so it softens into the spiral as the pinwheels bake. The recipe here features my favorite topping combination, but you can really add whatever you feel could work.
How to roll and slice them for clean spirals
Roll the dough out to about 1 cm thick so it can hold the filling without tearing or turning doughy in the center. Spread the pizza sauce in a thin, even layer, leaving the very edge a little barer so the roll seals instead of squeezing sauce out. Scatter the dried basil, oregano and rosemary, add the cubed vegan cheese, then roll the dough into a tight log — the tighter the roll, the neater the spiral. Slice into wheels about 2 cm thick using a sharp knife and a gentle sawing motion so you do not squash the spiral flat. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 20 to 25 minutes, until they turn golden and the edges look crisp. That golden color is your doneness cue: the dough should look set and lightly browned, not pale.
Ways to serve and switch them up
Serve the pinwheels warm with hot sauce on the side for dipping. They make a great party snack, a lunchbox filler, or a casual movie-night spread. As I said, these pinwheels really do fit so many circumstances. If you are building out a snack table, they sit nicely alongside other crowd-pleasers from my collection of vegan snack recipes, and a creamy French onion dip gives you a second thing to dunk into. They are also a hit with little ones, so they earn a spot among my vegan recipes for kids. Want to lean further into the pizza theme for a bigger spread? Pair them with a veggie pita pizza. And if you like the idea of making your own melty filling, my homemade vegan cheese recipes are a good place to start.
Make-ahead and freezing tips
These are made for batch cooking. Whenever I prepare these pinwheels, I make a large batch to make sure I have some extra for freezing. Freeze them once baked and fully cooled, in a single layer first so they do not stick together, then transfer to a container or bag. If I take them out in the morning, they are defrosted and ready to eat by lunchtime. A quick reheat in the oven brings back the crisp edges far better than the microwave, which can leave them soft. All this talk about the vegan pizza pinwheels really made me hungry, so I will cut short the introduction and head to the kitchen — and I encourage you to do the same, as you won’t be disappointed by the results.
If you give these a go, I would love to hear how your spirals held together and which hot sauce you reached for — leave a star rating and drop a comment below to tell me how your pizza pinwheels turned out!
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Vegan Pizza Pinwheels
Ingredients
- 1 pizza dough store-bought, thawed
- 1 cup pizza sauce
- 1 cup vegan cheese chopped into small cubes
- 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning basil, oregano, rosemary
- 2 Tbsp hot sauce
Instructions
- Roll out the dough to about 1 cm thick.
- Spread the pizza sauce evenly on top and season with dried basil, oregano and rosemary.
- Scatter the chopped vegan cheese over the sauce, then roll up the dough tightly into a log.
- Cut the log into wheels about 2 cm thick.
- Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 20-25 minutes, or until golden and set.
- Serve warm with hot sauce.
Notes
Frequently Asked Questions
Vegan pizza pinwheels are spirals of pizza dough spread with pizza sauce, dried Italian herbs and cubed vegan cheese, rolled into a log, sliced into wheels and baked. They taste like pizza but come in a portable, snackable shape. They are a quick comfort-food snack you can make in under 30 minutes.
Yes. They use store-bought pizza dough, pizza sauce, dried herbs and vegan cheese, with hot sauce for serving, so every ingredient is plant-based. Just double-check that your pizza dough and vegan cheese are certified vegan, since some store-bought doughs can contain dairy or egg.
Spread the sauce in a thin, even layer and leave the far edge a little barer so the roll seals cleanly. Roll the dough into a tight log, then slice into 2 cm wheels with a sharp knife using a gentle sawing motion so you do not squash the spiral. A tighter roll gives you neater, more defined pinwheels.
Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 20 to 25 minutes. They are done when they turn golden and the edges look crisp and set, rather than pale. Use that golden color as your doneness cue and pull them once they reach it.
Yes, they freeze very well, which is why I always make a large batch. Freeze them once baked and fully cooled, in a single layer first so they do not stick, then move them to a bag or container. If you take them out in the morning, they are defrosted and ready to eat by lunchtime, and a quick oven reheat brings back the crisp edges.
Serve them warm with hot sauce on the side for dipping, or alongside a French onion dip for variety. They work as a party snack, a lunchbox filler or a movie-night spread, and they pair nicely with other pizza-style bites for a bigger table. They are also kid-friendly, so they fit right into a casual family snack spread.
Quick and delicious!