These Cream Cheese Pickle Roll-Ups offer a spicy twist to your average cream cheese pickle roll-up with the addition of pickled jalapenos. It's an easy pickle appetizer you can whip up for everything from potlucks to BBQs.
If you’re a Minnesotan (or fellow Midwestern neighbor), you already know. You’ve eaten dozens of these things, and you LOVE them (at least I hope you do).
Jump to:
What is a Pickle Roll-Up?
Or maybe you know it by the dill pickle wrap, the pickle dog, or my personal favorite, Minnesota sushi! Spread deli meat with cream cheese, plunk a pickle in the middle, wrap it up, and there you have it - a cream cheese pickle roll-up! Simple, humble, delicious; it's one amazingly delicious pickle appetizer. A tacky, tongue-in-cheek nod to actual sushi (maybe... probably?).
Most of the time you'll see ham used to make dill pickle wraps, but you can use whatever deli meat you wish. I decided to use pastrami in this recipe to mix it up.
That’s a Midwestern home cook for you though. Take a few humble ingredients, put ‘em together, and transform it into something weirdly delicious.
I love the weirdly delicious cream cheese pickle roll-up. Even though they cost like $7 bucks at the Minnesota State Fair (where they call ‘em pickle dogs), I always get one. The tart vinegary-ness of the pickle against the cool, rich cream cheese, neatly wrapped up in pastrami is inexplicably refreshing when you’ve been eating fried food all day.
But it should go without saying that pickle wraps are good any day. Like days like today. When it’s mid-March and you’re ready for the snow to melt so you can ditch the clunky boots and shed some layers.
What ingredients do you need to make dill pickle roll-ups?
Add pickled jalapenos to the traditional dill pickle wrap recipe and you get a zesty twist on Cream Cheese Pickle Roll-ups. Literally, 4 ingredients to achieve pickle appetizer greatness.
Since there are so few ingredients, I encourage you to use the best quality you can find for each. I’m all about:
- Claussen pickles
- Philadelphia cream cheese
- Boar's Head deli pastrami
- San Marcos pickled jalapenos
As for the pickled jalapenos, I’m obsessed with the San Marcos brand. What separates these from your standard pickled jalapeno is the canola oil they add to the mix. It gives the jalapeno juice a slightly oily quality that pairs beautifully with the cream cheese. Also, it makes a great homemade vinaigrette base.
If you crave spicy foods like I do, I know you’ll love these Pickle Wraps. Just look at 'em. Weirdly delicious. 100%.
How do you make cream cheese pickle roll-ups?
Pulverize pickled jalapenos in a food processor.
Mix cream cheese and pulverized jalapenos and jalapeno juice together until well combined.
Lay out a piece of pastrami, slather it with jalapeno cream cheese, then place a pickle in the middle.
Roll the pastrami up around the pickle.
Variations
You can of course leave the pickled jalapeno out of these pickle roll-ups, but I love the mild heat it adds. Just follow the recipe as listed sans jalapeno.
Instead of jalapeno, you could also try using banana peppers or olives as mix-ins.
I used pastrami here because I wanted to try something different than the usual ham, but sliced deli ham is the OG meat to use here. It's fantastic with honey or smoked ham. You can use whatever deli meat you like - try smoked turkey or chicken.
Storage
Store dill pickle roll-ups in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to three days.
If you like these pickle appetizers, you'll love:
Cream Cheese Pickle Roll-Ups
Ingredients
- 8 spears Claussen pickles
- 8 slices deli-sliced pastrami*
- 1 8 ounce package Philadelphia cream cheese
- 2 pickled jalapenos
- 3 teaspoon pickled jalapeno juice
Instructions
- Add softened cream cheese to a mixing bowl.
- Lay 8 pickle spears on paper towels to remove excess liquid.
- Add 2 whole pickled jalapenos and 3 teaspoons of the pickling liquid and to a food processor. Process for around 20-30 seconds, until pretty much pulverized.
- Add the pulverized jalapenos to the cream cheese.
- Mix until well incorporated. A hand mixer can be your friend here, getting you a light, creamy, and wonderfully spreadable texture with minimal effort. Or if it’s arm day, use a fork to mix.
- Lay out a slice of pastrami onto a cutting board. Spread a generous tablespoon of the jalapeno cream cheese mixture onto the pastrami(it’s okay to leave a bit of the edges unslathered, your goal is to focus on getting an even layer in the center).
- Place one pickle spear in the center. Wrap one edge of the deli meat over the pickle and continue rolling until you can’t roll anymore.
- Place your Jalapeno Pickle Roll Up in a container, seam side down. Repeat until you’ve used up all of the cream cheese.
- Refrigerate for a few hours, so the cream cheese has a chance to firm up.
Tino Marie says
So easy and delicious! Love the heat from the jalapeno.