For years I’ve been enjoying Pickled Red Onions on various dishes in multiple restaurants and absolutely loved the flavor they added. About six months ago I finally started making my own Pickled Red Onions and they did not disappoint. With 5 ingredients and less than 10 minutes to make, they’ve quickly become a refrigerator staple in our house and my husband gets excited (literally) when he sees them on the refrigerator shelf (“Ooooo! You made the onions!”).

Pickling is a concept that I think comes across as a challenge; something that will be time-consuming for the average home chef. It certainly slowed me down in giving this a try. However, I’ve come to realize as with most things pickling comes in all shapes, sizes, and durations according to what you’re trying to accomplish. The thing that remains true across all pickling concepts is that there is always a mix of sugar and vinegar – the sweet and tart combination that creates the pickling effect. 

For these Pickled Red Onions, I use granulated sugar and white vinegar (the standard vinegar you can find anywhere) with a little bit of salt and water to make the pickling liquid. I recommend combining all of the ingredients in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat to allow the sugar to dissolve and be fully incorporated. From there, the rest couldn’t be easier. Simply pour the pickling liquid over the sliced red onions and let them pickle in the refrigerator for at least one hour before enjoying. The entire process takes about 10 minutes… and I know we can all find 10 minutes for something delicious!

Try making a batch of these Pickled Red Onions and you won’t be sorry. They are great to up the ante on any salad, on top of avocado toast, as a garnish to a deviled egg, or to a sandwich. They also can make a fun hostess gift for the next dinner party you attend; your friends will be very impressed and will love how beautiful they are with their pink, rosy color.

Once you start making Pickled Red Onions, you definitely won’t stop.

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Pickled Red Onions

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Total Time10 minutes mins

Course: Appetizer, Side Dish, Snack

Ingredients

• 1 Small Onion, halved then thinly sliced
• 1 C White Vinegar
• 1 C Water
• 1/4 C Sugar
• 1 Tbsp Salt

Instructions

• In a medium saucepan, combine the vinegar, water, sugar, and salt. Heat over medium heat stirring frequently until the sugar and salt are dissolved. This will take about 5 minutes.
• Once the sugar and salt have fully dissolved, turn off the heat and let cool slightly for 5 minutes.
• While the pickling liquid is cooling, half the red onion and thinly slice into half-moon shapes. Add them to an air-tight, glass container such as a mason jar or refrigerator storage container.
• Pour the slightly cooled pickling liquid over the top of the onions until just covered; they do not need to be fully submerged.
• Cover, store in the refrigerator for one hour before serving.

Sweet and Savory Pinwheels were inspired by two things: our pandemic quarantine pantry/refrigerator stock and my sister-in-law asking if we wanted to split sides for Easter lunch all the way back in 2020. I had been on a bit of a bread kick so flour and yeast were ample. I had also been stocking up with various sauces to help my husband and I put together a quick meal while our son was napping.

Sweet and Savory pinwheels are layered with cinnamon sugar (think cinnamon roll), pesto and sweet onion, and bacon jam with shredded cheddar cheese.

One thing you should know about me is that I don’t believe in always starting from scratch and firmly believe in adapting things based on what works for you. This is true for me in cooking, but also in all other aspects of my life, even work. Is there a shortcut available that’s great quality and will reduce the time it will take me? Count me in!

In this case, that’s true of the dough for Sweet and Savory Pinwheels. I adapted two recipes – one from Half Baked Harvest and the other from Two Peas and Their Pod. This combination works great for me every time and makes 24 Sweet and Savory Pinwheels in total (8 of each flavor).

Sweet and Savory Pinwheels do take some time but it’s time well spent! These beautiful, sweet, savory, and very delicious pinwheels are a perfect appetizer or accompaniment to any meal, especially one for the Holidays.

Prepare the Sweet and Savory Pinwheel Dough

Making bread dough of any kind is generally accompanied by some technical baking terms. To prepare the Sweet and Savory Pinwheel Dough, start by blooming the yeast. This process essentially activates the yeast, ensuring it will help the dough rise. To bloom the yeast, combine the yeast, 1 tsp of sugar, and warm water in a small bowl. Stir the mixture gently and let it sit for 5 – 10 minutes until it starts to bubble and is slightly fragrant.

Next, fit your stand mixer with the beater blade (the one that looks like a whisk). Combine the butter, sugar (1 cup), salt, and hot water on a high speed until it forms a homogeneous, smooth mixture. Once combined turn off your mixer and let it cool off a bit, about 5 minutes.

To the cooled (think warm-ish) butter/sugar/salt/hot water mixture, add two cups of flour and combine on medium heat (so the flour doesn’t splatter everywhere) until very smooth.

Add the bloomed yeast and mix well. Add the two eggs (pre-beaten) and combine fully.

At this point, you’re halfway through the process! Remove the beater blade from the stand mixer and switch it out with the dough hook.

With the stand mixer on low speed, add in the remaining flour allowing the dough to combine as you go. This can get messy if the mixer is on too high of a speed. I generally use speed four on my KitchenAid stand mixer. Keep going until you’ve added a total of 8 cups of four.

Evaluate the Sweet and Savory Pinwheel Dough

Bread dough sends its own messages and typically when bread dough is ready it will start to pull away from the sides of the bowl. After 8 cups of four have been added, turn the mixer off and evaluate the dough. If the dough is still super sticky and not coming off the sides, continue to add flour up to 10 cups until it starts to pull away from the edges. If the dough is a little sticky and starting to pull away from the sides, add another cup (a total of 9) of flour. Go easy with adding additional flour and monitor the stickiness and the message your dough is sending as you go!

Knead and Rest the Sweet and Savory Pinwheel Dough

Once the flour is fully combined, allow the dough hook to knead your dough for 3 – 5 minutes. This helps to form the glutens in the dough.

After 3 – 5 minutes flour a clean work surface (a large cutting board, a countertop, etc.) and turn out the dough.

Knead the dough by hand until it’s very smooth, sprinkling additional flour as needed so your hands don’t stick to the dough. This process takes about 3 minutes and is a bit of an arm workout!

Place the kneaded dough in a clean bowl, cover it tightly with plastic wrap, and place it in a warm spot to rise. My favorite place to let dough rise is in the oven (not turned on). It’s not likely to be disturbed and is temperature regulated. Let the dough rise for one hour (up to two); it will double in size.

Make the Sweet and Savory Pinwheel Fillings & Icing

I recommend making the fillings and icing while the dough is rising. That way, you’ll be ready to go and knock out the remaining steps.

Cinnamon Roll Filling

Combine the cinnamon, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and salt, and mix well. Use approximately three-fourths of the mixture for the filling of the cinnamon rolls and reserve the remaining for sprinkling on top.

Cinnamon Roll Icing

Combine the powdered sugar and water in a bowl and mix well. If you feel it’s too loose, add a bit more powdered sugar, 1 Tbsp at a time. If it’s too thick, add a bit more water, ½ tsp at a time. The goal is to have an easily pourable icing so it gets into the nooks and crannies of your cinnamon roll pinwheel.

Pesto and Sweet Onion

Heat a medium-sized skillet over medium heat; saute the onion and garlic in olive oil and season well with salt and pepper. Saute the onion and garlic mixture until the onion is slightly translucent and the garlic is very fragrant. This will take about five minutes.

While the onion and garlic are sauteing, combine the pesto, lemon juice, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and olive oil in a bowl. Stir well to combine and set aside.

Once the onion and garlic mixture has finished cooking and cooled slightly (think warm-ish), add them to the pesto mixture, stir well to combine, and set it aside.

When ready, you’ll spread all of this filling inside the Sweet and Savory Pinwheel dough.

Bacon Jam & Cheddar

If using store-bought bacon jam, bring it to room temperature along with the 8 ounces of shredded sharp cheddar cheese (or other favorite shredded cheese).

As an alternative to bacon jam, you can prepare a half-pound (about 6 – 8 slices) in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and ½ teaspoons cayenne pepper while the bacon is cooking. Once the bacon is cooked to your desired doneness (I like my bacon on the chewy side, you might like yours more crispy), dice it up and set it aside.

For the Sweet and Savory Pinwheels, you’ll dollop scoops of the bacon jam (or diced bacon) all over the pinwheel dough, then layer the shredded sharp cheddar cheese on top. There is no exact science to this method – just go for it!

Form the Sweet and Savory Pinwheels

After the Sweet and Savory Pinwheel dough has risen, turn it out on a clean surface (a large cutting board, a countertop, etc.) dusted with flour.

Divide the dough into three even parts (you might not be exact and that will be ok!) and pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees.

Roll each third of the dough into a large rectangle approximately 10 inches wide by 14 inches long.
Using a basting brush or spoon, evenly spread melted butter over the dough, just enough to cover it and give the filling something to stick to. Add the filling (Cinnamon Roll, Sweet Onion and Pesto, or Bacon Jam and Cheddar). With the filling in place, roll your dough all the way to the end creating one log of deliciousness. Roll as tightly as possible. Again, no exact science, just go with it – you’ll do great!

Cut the Sweet and Savory Pinwheel log into approximately 8 slices, making them as close to the same size as possible. To do this, I recommend starting by slicing in the middle, then cutting each half in half, and so on.

Place the sliced Sweet and Savory Pinwheels into a baking dish relatively close together. In my opinion, it’s absolutely fine for them to touch, depending on the size of your dish. I use several pie and cake pans and about a ½ inch gap between each pinwheel. Let them sit like this for another 30 minutes. They’ll rise ever so slightly again.

Repeat this process until you’ve made each flavor profile.

Baking and Final Touches for the Sweet and Savory Pinwheels

Each flavor profile has its own pre-baking finishing touch. For the cinnamon rolls, dust the top with the remaining filling mixture. For the pesto and sweet onion pinwheels, sprinkle salt and pepper and parmesan cheese (if using). For bacon jam and cheddar, sprinkle the top with salt and pepper.

Bake the Sweet and Savory Pinwheels for 30 – 35 minutes or until golden brown. Once removed from the oven, allow them to cool and set in the baking dishes for approximately 5 minutes.

Serve the Sweet Onion and Pesto and Bacon Jam and Cheddar Pinwheels as is. For the Cinnamon rolls, pour over the icing and (ideally) serve warm.

This recipe was a brainchild of mine and one that went right, folks! They turned out amazing and almost too stunning to eat. I’m thrilled to be sharing this with you and I hope you’ll share your oh-so-impressive pinwheels with good friends and family, too.

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Savory and Sweet Pinwheels

Prep Time30 minutes mins

Cook Time35 minutes mins

Rising Time1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Total Time2 hours hrs 35 minutes mins

Course: Breakfast, Side Dish

Servings: 24 Pinwheels

Ingredients

Pinwheel Dough

• 2 Packets Active Dry Yeast
• 1 C Warm Water The water should be warm to the touch; not hot.
• 2 C Hot Water The water should be boiling.
• 1 C Sugar Plus 1 Tsp
• 10 C All Purpose Flour Plus extra for rolling out the dough; approximate 2 Tbsp
• 2 Eggs Size Large
• 1 Tbsp Salt
• 1/2 C Butter

Cinnamon Sugar Filling

• 3 Tbsp Cinnamon
• 1/2 C Brown Sugar
• 1/2 C Sugar
• 1/2 Tsp Salt

Pinwheel Icing (For Cinnamon Sugar Layered Pinwheel)

• 1 C Powdered Sugar (Also known as Confectioners Sugar)
• 2 Tbsp Water The water should be at room temperature.

Pesto and Sweet Onion Filling

• 1 Small Vidalia Onion, Diced If you do not have access to a sweet, Vidalia onion, use a white onion.
• 2 Tsp Garlic, finely chopped
• 1/2 C Pesto If you are a pesto-lover, you can add up to 3/4 C.
• 1 Tsp Lemon Juice
• 1/4 Tsp Salt
• 1/4 Tsp Red Pepper Flakes
• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 1/2 C Parmesan Cheese, Grated (Optional)

Bacon Jam & Cheddar Filling

• 1/2 C Bacon Jam Bacon Jam can be found in most Grocery Stores. If you cannot find Bacon Jam, cook 4 slices of bacon to a medium-crisp. Once cooked, toss with 1 Tbsp brown sugar and 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper.
• 8 Oz Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Extras

• 1/2 C Butter, Melted

Instructions

Make the Pinwheel Dough

• Bloom the yeast: In a small bowl, combine the yeast, sugar (1 tsp), and warm water. Give it a gentle stir then let it sit until the yeast bubbles. You’ll start to smell it after about five minutes. Once it’s bubbly and fragrant, the mixture is ready for the next step.
• Fit your stand mixer with the beater attachment (the one that looks like a whisk). Combine the butter, sugar (1 cup), salt, and hot water. Once combined turn off your mixer and let it cool off a bit.
• Once your mixture is cooled slightly (warm, not hot), add in two cups of flour and combine until smooth.
• Add in the bubbly and fragrant yeast mixture; combine at low speed.
• Add the two large eggs to a bowl and beat until the yolks are broken and the whites are fully combined. Add the beaten eggs to the mixer; combine at low speed.
• Remove the beater attachment from the mixer and swap it with the dough hook.
• With your mixer on a low speed, add in the remaining flour 1/4 cup at a time allowing the dough hook to combine as you go.

  Once you get to 8 cups of flour total, take inventory of your dough. If it’s super sticky and not coming off the sides of the bowl, you’ll most likely need to go up to the full 10 cups. If the dough is a little less sticky and starts to come off the sides of your bowl, you'll most likely need 9 cups.
• Once your flour is fully combined, allow the dough hook to knead your dough for 3 – 5 minutes. 
• Flour a clean surface (a marble or granite countertop, a cutting board, etc. will work) and turn out your dough.
• Knead the dough by hand until it’s very smooth. Don’t hesitate to sprinkle on some flour while you knead if the dough feels sticky or if your hands are getting a bunch of dough on them. This process will take 2 - 4 minutes.
• Place the dough in a clean bowl, cover it tightly with plastic wrap, and place in a warm spot to rise. I typically put mine in my oven so it won’t get disturbed.  
• Let the dough rise for one hour; it should double in size. This can take up to 90 minutes.

Cinnamon Sugar Filling

• In a small mixing bowl, combine the cinnamon, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and salt.
• Once fully combined, set approximately 1/4 of the mixture aside (you'll use this to top the pinwheels).

Pinwheel Icing (For Cinnamon Sugar Layered Pinwheel)

• Combine the powdered sugar and water in a bowl, mix well using a whisk.

  There are no hard rules for this icing. If you feel it’s too loose, add a bit more powdered sugar, 1 Tbsp at a time. If it’s too thick, add a bit more water, ½ tsp at a time.

  The goal is to have an easily pourable icing so it gets into the nooks and crannies of your cinnamon sugar pinwheel.

Pesto and Sweet Onion Filling

• Saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Saute until the onion is translucent; this will take about five minutes.
• While the onion is sauteing, combine the pesto, lemon juice, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and parmesan cheese (if using).
• Once the onion and garlic mixture has cooled, add to the pesto mixture and mix well.

Bacon Jam & Cheddar Filling

• Bring the Bacon Jam to room temperature. (If you’re preparing the bacon with the brown sugar and cayenne, make sure it is also room temperature.)
• Pour the shredded cheddar cheese in a small bowl so it's easily accessible when you're ready to fill the pinwheels.

Form the Pinwheels

• Melt the 1/2 cup butter in a microwave-safe dish stirring every 15 seconds until fully melted.
• Once your dough has risen, turn it out onto a clean surface dusted with flour. Divide it into three parts. 
• Roll 1/3 of your dough into an approximate 10 x 14 rectangle.
• Using a basting brush or the back of a spoon, evenly spread 1/3 of the melted butter.
• Select your filling and evenly spread across the entire surface of the dough, leaving about a 1/2 inch edge.
• With the filling in place, roll the dough as tightly as possible all the way to the end creating a log.
• Cut the dough into 8 pieces using a very sharp knife. You can achieve even Pinwheel sizes by first cutting the log in half, then cutting each half down the center, and so on until you have 8 pinwheels.
• Place your cut Pinwheels into a 9 x 13 baking dish relatively close together, leaving about a 1/2 inch space between each Pinwheel. If your baking dish does not allow for a 1/2 inch spacing between each Pinwheel, it's ok. Try to achieve as much space as possible and if the Pinwheels touch sides, it will be ok.

  Do not mix pinwheel flavors in the same baking dish.
• Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
• Let the Pinwheels rise for 30 minutes in the baking dish.

Bake the Pinwheels

• For the Cinnamon Sugar Pinwheels, dust the top with the cinnamon sugar filling you reserved.

  For the Sweet Onion and Pesto Pinwheels, sprinkle the top with Salt and Pepper and the Parmesan cheese you reserved.

  For the Bacon Jam and Cheddar Pinwheels, sprinkle the top with Salt and Pepper.
• Bake at 375 degrees for 30 - 35 minutes until golden brown.
• Let the pinwheels cool and set in the baking dish for 5 minutes.
• For the Cinnamon Sugar Pinwheels, top them with the icing.
• Serve the pinwheels warm and enjoy.

Recipe Tips

For the baking dish, a 9 x 13 pan is ideal; however, if you do not have three 9 x 13 baking dishes, you and utilize multiple smaller baking dishes such as cake pans, pie plates, or other sized baking dishes.