Ina Garten Gives Ham And Cheese An Elegant Twist With This Frozen Store-Bought Pastry

When you imagine budget-friendly sandwiches like ham and cheese, you're probably not imagining an elegant meal. Ina Garten, however, encourages you to eat with your pinky up the next time you're enjoying a ham cheese. See, instead of using your standard white bread to sandwich cheese and ham, you're going to be using store-bought puff pastry.

Don't scratch your head. There's a reasoning behind the Barefoot Contessa's tip. Puff pastry is buttery, flakey, and crunchy. When you use it to sandwich ham and cheese, it's like you're biting into a savory croissant that was freshly made at a bakery. You get crunch and buttery richness, then hot ham and melty cheese, perfectly complemented by a little mustard. 

And it's easier to put together than it looks. Garten simply places a sheet of thawed puff pastry on a baking sheet, brushes Dijon mustard over it, and layers on the ham and cheese before topping it with a second sheet of puff pastry. She then brushes the top with an egg wash, which helps the pastry bake up glossy and golden brown.

For added texture, you can sprinkle toasted sesame seeds on top of the egg wash before you bake the pastry. Then, after about 25 minutes in a hot oven, it comes out piping hot, crispy, and ready to serve and impress. Once you pull it out of the oven, let the pastry rest for a few minutes. Slice it into squares too soon and you may risk having the molten cheese ooze out. Enjoy the savory squares as they are. They're great as a party appetizer, late afternoon snack, or finger food. 

Of course, if you'd like to spruce them up, you can. If you're into spicy food, drizzle some chili crisp over the squares. The chili crisp will add a pleasant kick of heat, umami, and crunch. For a sweet-and-savory twist, drizzle the squares with honey or serve them with jam, such as fig jam. 

To round out the meal, pair the puff pastry ham and cheese squares with a crisp green salad. Be sure to toss the greens and veggies in Ina Garten's lemon vinaigrette, which will help cut through the richness of the buttery pastry. Pull it all together, and you've just turned humble sandwich and salad into a meal elegant enough for the Barefoot Contessa's own table in her East Hampton estate. Now, pinkies up.