The Simple Way To Cut Satisfying Circle Bread For Tea Sandwiches
If you've ever thrown or even attended a get-together where fun, fancy, and delicate finger foods rule the day, such as at a bridal or baby shower, odds are you've enjoyed miniature sandwiches, sometimes known as finger sandwiches or tea sandwiches.
Since they began being served during British afternoon tea in the Victorian era, the sandwiches were designed as a light snack to stave off hunger between lunch and dinner, and they typically consist of cold and refreshing ingredients such as egg salad, chicken salad, or cucumber. Our take on cucumber sandwiches combines herb-infused cream cheese, watercress, and cucumbers and serves them on, not a dense, large-crumb bread from a delicatessen but a soft, processed off-the-shelf bread with a tight, even-crumb.
They can be prepared a number of ways, but nearly always, the bread crust has been removed and the sandwiches are cut into neat triangles or small circles that can be easily held in your hand and eaten in a few bites.
Two ways to cut your sandwiches into circles
Although they look neat and visually appealing when they're cut to the same shape and stacked on a serving platter at a party, it can be a bit time-consuming to slice the bread into various shapes and remove the crust all by hand using a knife. Instead, there are a couple of other methods you can use that can produce uniform results. One way to remove the crusts and get your tea sandwiches in a fun shape is by using a biscuit or cookie cutter to turn the small sandwiches into the shape of your choice.
But what if you don't have a biscuit or cookie cutter? According to French chef, author, and culinary educator Jacques Pépin, there's another item you can use to shape the bread on your sandwiches that everyone has in their kitchen. Pépin recommends using the rim of a drinking glass to cut your sandwiches into uniform circles. So the next time you're making tea sandwiches, remember that you can grab one of several common kitchen items to turn your sandwiches into satisfying, grown-ups' Uncrustables.