Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Tuesday's Tip



It's that time of the year of Mother's Day teas, end of the year parties, and luncheons with the ladies. In fact, there is always an occasion for finger sandwiches! I will share the BEST cucumber sandwiches. My Tuesday's Tip is at the bottom of the recipe. If you prepare your sandwiches in advance or are taking them to a party, it is important that you dampen a paper towel and put it over the sandwiches. You can do this on the tray by covering the sandwiches in the paper towel and then with tin foil. Another idea is to place the sandwiches in ziploc bags with the paper towels on either side of the sandwiches. This keeps your sandwiches from drying out before the party!

Cucumber Tea Sandwiches

1 seedless cucumber, sliced thin
¼ cup white wine vinegar
1T salt (divided)
4 oz cream cheese, softened
½ cup butter, softened
1 clove garlic, minced
6 green onions, roughly chopped
1T fresh lemon juice
1t lemon zest
½ t freshly ground pepper
1t fresh dill (or ¼ t dried), plus dill sprigs for garnish
1 loaf thinly sliced white bread

Place the cucumber slices in a colander set in the sink. Pour the vinegar and 2 teaspoons of the salt over them. Drain for 20 minutes, then remove the cucumber slices from the colander and pat dry.

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade, combine the cream cheese, butter, garlic, green onions, lemon juice, zest, the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, pepper and dill. Process until the mixture is smooth.

Cut into the bread slices with a 2-inch round cookie cutter. Place the rounds in an airtight zip-top bag until you’re ready to assemble the sandwiches.

Spread the cream cheese mixture on the bread slices. Top with cucumber slices and garnish with a little sprig of fresh dill. Serve immediately.

(This recipe makes “open faced” sandwiches. I used a smaller cookie cutter and topped the sandwiches with another piece of bread. Assemble either way! If you prepare them ahead of time, cover the sandwiches with a damp paper towel in a zip-top bag – this will keep them from drying out.)

2 comments:

bevy said...

After tomato sandwiches, these are my favorite!

V in CLT said...

Just in time! Our Caroline is having a 5 year old tea party birthday party on Sat. I will make these for the little ladies ;-)