Total Time Investment: 8 Minutes
I was unable to eat ham & cheese anything for many years. In my late teens I spent a significant period of time in hospital. The food was awful, and the only lunchtime option I could stomach was the toasted ham & cheese sandwich. It arrived cold, and soggy, and put me off ham and cheese for a very long time.
Fast forward quite a few years, and you will find that ham and cheese anything has become one of my favourite lunchtime options. The key to a tasty lunch is good bread, quality ham, tasty cheese and a thin smear of tangy mustard; all of which makes a sandwich world's away from that soggy hospital version.
Of all the possible ham and cheese combinations, these ham and brie flatbread sandwiches are my absolute favourites. They are so quick and easy to make that they appear regularly at lunchtime on weekends when the family is clamouring to be fed. I hope you like them as much as we do.
Rich, decadent, & ridiculously easy to prepare, these #ham & #brie #flatbread #sandwiches are ready just 8 minutes. Great for a simple #lunch, a #quick #snack or even a light #supper. #easymeals #quickmeals Click To Tweet
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Ham & Brie Flatbread Sandwich Ingredient Substitutions
On the face of it, this recipe looks like just your run-of-the-mill ham and cheese flatbread sandwich. Don't let that stop you getting creative with your lunch. Why not:
- Swap out the ham for prosciutto, or your favourite cured meats.
- Use Camembert, Fontina, Gruyere or any other melting cheese in place of the brie.
- Switch up the mustard. Try a nice wholegrain mustard in place of the Dijon.
- Substitute the rocket with young spinach leaves
- Try your favourite bread rolls in place of the flatbreads. I recently made this recipe using mini Turkish breads with great success.
Tips and Tricks for Delicious Flatbread Sandwiches
I make these flatbread sandwiches so often that I always keep the bread and cheese on hand so I can whip them up quickly. A few of my favourite tricks that I have learnt over the years are:
- That this recipe is extremely flexible. Do not be bound by the quantities given in the recipe below. Use them simply as a guide. If you like lots of ham, add lots. Go wild with the mustard. Pile on the cheese. At the end of the day, you are just assembling a ham and cheese sandwich, so make it how you like to eat it.
- Bread can be frozen for up to three months if kept well wrapped and sealed. I buy packets of flatbreads when they are on sale and freeze them until required.
- Freeze your cheese. I know you think I am crazy, but it was this little tip from my friend Celia that started me down this path. Now I pick up Camembert or brie whenever I see it on special and freeze it using Celia's instructions. As it is going to melt in my sandwiches, I just defrost the cheese on the kitchen bench for a few hours before lunch. I have also sliced the cheese whilst partially frozen and used this in the flatbread sandwiches, which works just as well when I have failed to plan properly.
- Flatbread sandwiches cook best in a flat panini press. I have had some success cooking them under a grill (broiler) and even in a fry pan once out of desperation, but the best result is produced in a sandwich press.
- Cut your flatbread sandwich with a very large knife or a pizza cutter. Trust me on this one. I've tried many implements to cut these sandwiches over the years, and have had the most success with an implement that produces a single, sharp cut.
- These are rich. If your eyes are bigger than your stomach, and you make too many flatbread sandwiches to be eaten in one session, the leftovers can be reheated quite successfully in the sandwich press. They are not as good as they are freshly made, but they are still delicious.
Enjoy!
One year ago: Crispy Sweet Potato Chips
Two years ago: Pancetta & Broccoli Pasta
Three years ago: Homemade Beef Stock Cubes