Classic flavors come together in every bite of easy, baked Ham and Cheese Sliders. A real crowd favorite, layers of savory ham and Swiss cheese are sandwiched between sweet Hawaiian bread and smothered in a buttery, sauce and baked to perfection.
These pull apart sandwiches are the perfect finger food! Therefore they are also a delicious appetizer, EASY weeknight dinner or quick hot lunch option. Perfect for serving to a crowd these hot sandwiches are a real potluck or tailgate party favorite.
However, if feeling like needs to bean easy soup and sandwich kind of night, no problem! Just serve these easy Ham and Cheese sandwich sliders with your favorite bowl of soup for a warm and comforting meal. Soups like our Tomato Soup or Cheesy Broccoli Soup are always great choices.
If serving for dinner try serving with a salad or veggie to round out your meal. Or if serving as an appetizer on a party menu, serve them up with other appetizer favorites like honey garlic meatballs, buffalo chicken dip, or burnt ends.
🥫 Ingredients
Whether using leftover ham from the Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter holiday or sliced deli meat, baked Ham and Cheese sliders are quick and easy to pull together.
- Hawaiian Rolls
- Sliced Ham
- Swiss Cheese
- Butter
- Brown Sugar
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Poppy Seeds
- Dry Mustard
- Onion Powder
🥣 Step-by-Step Instructions
Prepare Ingredients
Firstly, to prepare our baked Ham and Cheese sandwiches we need to cut the rolls in half to form tops and bottoms for the sliders.
Now, most slider recipes will instruct you to slice the rolls in a sheet so all the bottoms and tops stay connected, then adding layers of meat and cheese across the connected buns.
This can certainly be done with this recipe but I personally find that the sliders are so much easier to serve and enjoy, when they have been prepared as individual sandwiches.
When placed side by side in the pan as individual sandwiches that means there is no cutting necessary when ready to serve. Instead the sliders just pull apart easily.
When you are done with cutting the bread you will want to go ahead and also cut the ham and Swiss in half so they better fit on the roll when layering.
Layer
Then taking one roll, layer in slices of ham and cheese. Afterwards, add a top to the roll and place the sandwich in a 9x13 casserole dish.
When done repeat this till you have used all the materials and sandwiches are snuggly placed within the dish.
Mix Glaze
Once done, in a small bowl combine the melted butter, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, poppy seeds, dry mustard and onion powder.
However, if you don't have dry mustard on hand in your spice cabinet, you do have a few options when it comes to substitutes. The best and easiest option is swapping 1 teaspoon of dry mustard for 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard. (If in a real pinch you can also swap for traditional mustard.)
Using a basting brush, brush the sauce or glaze over the rolls till all of the tops and exposed sides are covered.
Bake
Then cover the Ham and Cheese sliders with aluminum foil and place in oven at 350° F to bake for 20 minutes. Lastly, remove the foil from the pan and allow the sliders to bake for an additional 10 minutes.
Pull dish from oven and serve hot as individual sized sliders and enjoy!
💭 Top Tips
Glaze or Sauce
Basting the tops of your Ham and Cheese sliders with the glaze is important for a yummy and crunchy bottom crust. The secret to really, really great sliders is the sauce or glaze.
Once brushed over the top the glaze elevates your sliders from an everyday sandwich to something really special and tasty.
Melty and Crispy
To achieve beautifully melty cheese and crisp golden brown buns, the trick is to cover the pan with foil when baking.
If you don't cover with foil, the tops of the sliders will brown too quickly, leaving the cheese not enough time to melt. To achieve the right melty to crispy ratio, begin by baking the sliders for 20 minutes while covered with foil.
Then remove the foil and allow the sliders to bake for a final 10 minutes uncovered. This will allow your sliders to get a nice and crispy golden brown finish.
🍽 Storing
Make Ahead
To prepare your ahead of time assemble your Ham and Cheese sliders right up to combining ingredients for the glaze. Instead cover the rolls in the casserole dish and place in the fridge until ready to bake.
When finally ready to enjoy pull the casserole dish out and prepare the sauce or glaze as normal. Brush it over the rolls and bake covered with foil for 20 minutes. Lastly remove foil and allow your sliders to bake uncovered for another 10 minutes, pull from oven, serve and enjoy!
Leftovers
Store leftover baked Ham and Cheese sliders in an airtight container in the fridge. When ready to enjoy warm sliders in the microwave or toaster oven till melty and warm. Slider leftovers are great for a quick lunch or easy, fast dinner!
📋 FAQ's
What cheese goes well with ham?
Ham and Swiss cheese will always be a classic pairing. Rich and creamy, Swiss has a pungent flavor that pairs perfectly with the saltiness found in ham.
Sharp cheddar cheese is another option that goes well with ham, especially if paired with a honey glazed ham. The sharp flavors of cheddar cuts through the sweetness of a glazed ham.
What is a good substitute for dry mustard?
If you don't happen to have dry mustard in your spice cabinet don't worry. Dry mustard can be easily substituted in your glaze for the Ham and Cheese sliders. Try instead swapping 1 teaspoon of dry mustard for 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard. And if in a real pinch you could also use traditional mustard.
Why is the cheese on my slider sandwiches not melting?
To get perfectly golden brown tops and melty cheese in Ham and Cheese sliders, it is important to cover them with foil when baking. This will help ensure the cheese on your sliders has time to get all melty, without the tops burning.
Then in the last 10 minutes remove the foil from the pan. This will allow the tops and sides of the sliders to reach a crispy golden brown.
How do you keep Ham and Cheese Sliders warm for serving?
If serving at a party or potluck you may be concerned about keeping your Baked Ham and Cheese sliders warm. Don't stress, there are a few options you can use when keeping appetizers warm.
Your first option is to place your baked sliders straight into an aluminum tray and cover tightly with foil. The second option is, as soon as the sliders come out of the oven, stack them one by one into a crockpot set to warm.
Ham and Cheese Sliders
Brushed with glaze and sandwiched between sweet Hawaiian bread these baked sliders are filled with layers of savory ham and melty cheese.
Ingredients
- 24 count Hawaiian Rolls
- 1 pound deli sliced ham
- 12 slices baby Swiss cheese
Sauce or Glaze
- 1 cup butter, melted
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
- 1 tablespoon dry mustard
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Cut rolls in half to form tops and bottoms for your sliders.
- Cut ham and Swiss in half for layering.
- Taking one roll, layer in slices of ham and cheese. Add a top to the roll and place sandwich in a 9x13 casserole dish.
- Repeat this till you have used all the materials and sandwiches are snuggly placed within the dish.
- In a small bowl combine the melted butter, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, poppy seeds, dry mustard and onion powder.
- Using a basting brush, brush the sauce or glaze over the tops of the rolls till all of the tops and exposed sides are covered.
- Cover the dish with aluminum foil and place in oven at 350° F to bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove the foil from the pan and allow to bake for an additional 10 minutes.
- Pull dish from oven and serve hot as individual sized sliders and enjoy!
Notes
- Most slider recipes will instruct you to slice the rolls in a sheet so all the bottoms and tops stay connected, then adding layers of meat and cheese across the connected buns. This can certainly be done with this recipe but I personally find that the sliders are so much easier to serve and enjoy when they have been prepared as individual sandwiches.
- 1 teaspoon of dry mustard can be substituted for 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard (or even traditional mustard if in a pinch).
- Onion powder can also be substituted for minced onions if preferred.
Don't miss other helpful tips, recipe variations and storage information found in the full article above.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 528Total Fat: 31gSaturated Fat: 17gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 124mgSodium: 712mgCarbohydrates: 41gFiber: 2gSugar: 17gProtein: 22g
Nutritional information provided is an automatic calculation and can vary based on the exact products used and any changes made to the recipe. If these calculations are important to you, I recommend calculating them for yourself.