How to Make Fancy Sandwiches for a Wedding

Getting married can be a huge expense. No matter how well you plan your budget it can seem smaller and smaller as the day approaches. The more things you and your family can handle yourself, the more money you will save for the things you can't do. One job you can do yourself is making wedding sandwiches, either as appetizers or as part of a casual wedding buffet. But just because they're sandwiches doesn't mean they'll be sloppy and casual. You can make fancy sandwiches to impress your guests.

Difficulty:

  

Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. • 1
     Order a selection of specialty breads from a good local bakery, such as sourdough, pumpernickel, raisin nut bread or marbled rye. At least three will make a nice assortment for a small wedding; if you are having a large wedding of 100 or more people, you can have as many as six.
   • 2
     Plan the filling for the types of sandwiches you want to make. Make some meat sandwiches, such as ham with a dollop of apricot jam, chicken salad with chopped walnuts, or shrimp salad. Choose some vegetarian options as well, such as a thin spread of cream cheese with a cucumber slice, avocado slices topped with sprouts and mayonnaise, or sun-dried tomatoes drizzled with olive oil and topped with a thin slice of mozzarella. Purchase all your filling products.
   • 3
     Set up your work area to make the first type of sandwich. Put out the ingredients; open jars and have a spoon or spreading knife available. Peel and slice vegetables, meat or cheese.
   • 4
     Take a slice of bread and cut it into a square, removing the crust. Alternately, use a biscuit cutter to make a small, round finger sandwich or use a cookie cutter to make one that is heart-shaped or wedding bell-shaped. Repeat this with all the bread in the loaf, making all the pieces the same size and shape.
   • 5
     Lay out half the bread slices. Cut meats and cheese to the same size of the bread slice. Use a square of bread as a template, or use the same cookie or biscuit cutter. Layer the meats or cheese on top of the bread pieces you've spread out on your work surface.
   • 6
     Add thin slices of vegetables, dollops of jam or creamy ingredients.
   • 7
     Spread cheese, mayonnaise, mustard or other spreadable ingredients on one side of the other half of bread slices. Places these slices over the others to make your sandwiches.
   • 8
     Cut large square sandwiches into triangles. If you used a biscuit or cookie cutter, leave the shape as it is. Make your second type, third and more sandwiches following the same production-line techniques.
   • 9
     Top the sandwiches if desired with a toothpick with a fancy tip. Arrange them in a pyramid-style shape on an attractive serving platter. Cover them with plastic wrap and store them in the refrigerator until the wedding.

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