Spinach pinwheels (details inside)?

I am making spinach and cheese pinwheels for my sister's baby shower this weekend. I am getting the recipe from allrecipes.com. It calls for a cheese spread and thawed spinach. Can I use fresh cheese (the grated cheese) and can I cook the spinach before putting it in the dough or not? If I don't cook the spinach before will it cook when I put the pinwheels in the oven? I have never made these before. I would really appreciate your help. Thank you.