Pillsbury Bake-Off Countdown: Cranberry-Orange Baklava Pinwheels

CakeSpy Note: I am beyond ecstatic to announce that I have been invited as a media guest to the 45th Annual Pillsbury Bake-Off in Orlando, Florida! The event will take place in late March; til then, I am going to feature several of the sweets finalists here in anticipation of the big day!

Baklava is already pretty great, but when you make it easy and even more interesting, it's a true winner. It's one of the finalists in the Pillsbury Bake-Off; as the recipe creator, Carrie Hudkins, of Wichita Falls, TX, says, "Change up classic Greek baklava with an easy, flaky Pillsbury® pie crust version drizzled with honey."

Well, ok! Here's how you do it.

Cranberry-Orange Baklava Pinwheels

20 servings

• 1 box Pillsbury® refrigerated pie crusts, softened as directed on box
• 2 tablespoons LAND O LAKES® Butter, melted
• 1 1/4 cups sweetened dried cranberries (6 oz)
• 1 cup Fisher® Chef's Naturals® Chopped Pecans
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons McCormick® Ground Cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon grated orange peel
• 1 LAND O LAKES® Egg
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1/2 cup honey

Procedure

1. Heat oven to 400°F. Line cookie sheet with cooking parchment paper or lightly spray with Crisco® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray. Unroll pie crusts; press each into 10 1/2-inch square. Brush squares with melted butter.
2. In food processor, place cranberries, pecans, sugar, cinnamon and orange peel. Cover; process with on-and-off pulses until mixture is finely chopped. Spread half of mixture on each pie crust square.
3. Roll up each pie crust into a log; pinch edge tightly to seal. In small bowl, beat egg and water until blended. Brush egg mixture over each log. Using serrated knife, cut each log into 10 slices. Place slices, cut sides up, 1 inch apart on cookie sheet; replacing any filling. Reshape slices, if necessary.
4. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove pinwheels on parchment from cookie sheet to cooling rack. Spoon about 1 teaspoon honey on each slice. Serve warm or cool.