Freaking cute ham and cheese sandwiches perfect for afternoon tea, parties, and snack time! Two bites and they’re gone.
Ham and Cheese Sandwiches for Tea Time
Double stacked and gone in 2-3 bites, these ham and cheese finger sandwiches are an adorable miniature version of a regular, full-sized sandwich.
- Tea sandwiches are small, neat, and compact as they’re meant to be dainty.
- Fun to make with kids. (No knives needed!)
- A cookie cutter makes it easy to cut into the ingredients and make them all exactly the same size.
- Great as party appetizers and for tea time.
RELATED: 24 Delicious Tea Sandwiches for Tea Parties
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My Tea Sandwich Essential:
Round Cookie Cutter Set
I use round cookie cutter to get my sandwiches to be all the same size -- a 2" circle can usually cut 2 circles out of each slice of bread.
Questions You May Have
What’s the best tea to pair with these finger sandwiches?
A black tea would go perfectly with the hearty flavors of this sandwich. It’ll hold up well through the richness from the ham and the Swiss cheese. I would recommend Earl Grey, English Breakfast, or Darjeeling.
Can I use other cookie cutter shapes?
Yes! But avoid using cookie cutters with too much detailing since it won’t be as easy to cut and stack evenly.
Can I use regular mayonnaise instead of the Japanese mayo used in the recipe?
Yes. I just prefer Japanese mayo.
I can’t find microgreens. What can I use instead?
You can use any small green leaves. Just anything with a green color to give the tea sandwich a pop of fresh color.
Do I need to use Black Forest ham?
Nope, you can use any kind of ham. Did you know it’s called Black Forest ham since the ham is produced in the Black Forest region of Germany? Thanks, Wikipedia!
Ham and Cheese Tea Sandwich Tips
- Freeze the bread and then cut out circles one slice at a time. You’ll get nicer sides that don’t look as pinched as you would with room temperature bread.
- Cornichons, mini pickles, are a perfect to serve with these tea sandwiches, as they are tart and balances the richness from the ham and cheese.
- Mayo should be used in each layer to bind everything together.
Free Tea Sandwiches Tip Sheet
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What You’ll Need
- Japanese mayonnaise
This is my secret ingredient that makes my sandwiches taste SO GOOD. - Dijon mustard
THE best mustard. PERIOD. Move over Grey Poupon. - Very thin white bread
- Sliced Black Forest ham
- Sliced Swiss cheese
- Microgreen leaves
- Optional: Cornichons
I serve these tiny pickles which go amazingly well with the sandwiches. - Round cookie cutter
Having the set makes it easy for me to cut out the right size bread. - Cocktail forks
I like adding these forks since they make it neater to pick up the sandwiches.
How to Make It
This recipe is super easy. Cut circles out of all the ingredients and stack them together.
To make 4 tea sandwiches, you’ll need:
- 8 circles of ham
- 8 circles of cheese
- 12 circles of bread
RELATED: Easy Peanut Butter and Jelly Tea Sandwiches
STEP 1: Cut circles out of the ham and cheese.
With a round cookie cutter, cut circles out of the ham and cheese.
Use the same cookie cutter size so that all circles are the exact same size.
RELATED: Cucumber Tea Sandwiches
STEP 2: Cut circles out of the bread.
Avoid the cutting the crust since we’re making crustless sandwiches.
RELATED: Radish Rose Tea Sandwiches
STEP 3: Assemble the tea sandwich.
Let’s stack them up!
This is the order from the bottom up: Bread, mayo, ham, mustard, cheese, mayo, bread, mayo, ham, mustard, cheese, mayo, bread.
The mayo and mustard do two things: they bind the layers together so it’s much neater to pick up and eat AND it keeps the sandwich from being too dry.
RELATED: Tomato, Mozzarella, & Basil Tea Sandwiches
STEP 4: Add microgreen leaf and skewer with a cocktail fork.
The hole thing gets topped off with a tiny green edible leaf and gets skewered with a cocktail fork. CUTE!
Serve with without the cocktail forks for kids since there’s that whole pesky pointy things and eyes when it comes to kids.
Optional: Serve cornichons alongside in a small bowl. Guests can use the cocktail fork to eat the cornichons if they wish.
Easy Ham and Cheese Tea Sandwiches
EQUIPMENT
INGREDIENTS
- 12 slices Very Thin white bread
- 2-4 slices Swiss cheese
- 2-4 slices Black Forest ham
- 1 tablespoon Japanese mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon mustard
- 4 microgreen leaves
- Optional: cornichons
INSTRUCTIONS
- Cut circles out of the ham and cheese.With a round cookie cutter, cut circles out of the ham and cheese. Cut out 8 circles of ham and 8 circles of cheese.
- Cut circles out of the bread.Avoid the cutting the crust. Cut 12 circles out of the bread.
- Assemble the tea sandwich. This is the order from the bottom up: Bread, mayo, ham, mustard, cheese, mayo, bread, mayo, ham, mustard, cheese, mayo, bread.
- Add microgreen leaf and skewer with a cocktail fork.
NOTES
- Frozen bread cuts neater than room temperature bread.
- Serve without cocktail forks for kids since there's that whole pesky pointy things and eyes when it comes to kids.
- Optional: Serve cornichons alongside in a small bowl. Guests can use the cocktail fork to eat the cornichons if they wish.
How far in advance can we make these?
Hi Yamaris, to make these ahead of time, I would cut the circles out the day before then assemble the morning you’ll be serving them. For the bread, you can freeze the circles in an airtight bag or container and take them out of the freezer until the next morning. Once the sandwiches are assembled, you can put them in the fridge covered loosely in damp paper towels so the bread doesn’t dry out.
I am so happy I came across your website! How many sandwiches of this size would you recommend per person (I also plan to make scones and a tart.. But just as an idea).
Hi Natalie, happy you found my site! I would make 3-4 tea sandwiches per person but these are on the smaller side so I would do 4-5 per person.
Made these today, I used English Mustard (as I’m from Norfolk UK – used to be the home of Colman’s English mustard) they were amazing! Thanks for making them available for me to use.
Hi Elizabeth, wonderful to hear!