This delicious Ham and Cheese Puff Pastry simply must make your post-holiday menu. It is a great way to use up leftover ham and it tastes like a gourmet treat! This breakfast, lunch, or dinner treat is a delicious buttery and flaky puff pastry enveloping a mixture of hot ham, melty swiss cheese, and fresh spinach. If you are looking for a simple and amazing recipe for your next Holiday Honey Baked Ham, look no further!

Ham and Cheese Puff Pastry

Ham and Cheese Puff Pastry

Around the holidays I start thinking about the guest list and how many mouths I am going to need to feed.  I do the basic calculations and then embarrassingly look to Google for “how much ham does one person eat?”. The answer is between 1/2 and 3/4 pounds per person, in case you were wondering. From there, I try doing the math and then eventually err on the side of caution and get the biggest one I can find, and then, consequently still worry about whether I got enough. Please tell me I am not alone in this planning nightmare!  My point of this story is that most of the time I do in fact have enough, and end up with copious amounts of leftover ham.

What to do? Enter Ham and Cheese Puff Pastries! These little guys are super buttery and flakey on the outside and filled with delicious ham and a creamy mixture of melt-in-your-mouth swiss cheese and fresh chopped spinach. Turning your left-over ham problem into a gourmet solution.

Ham Cheese and Spinach Filling in Ham and Cheese pastry puff

Ham and Cheese Puff Pastry Recipe

To make this ham and cheese puff pastry, you will likely need a few ingredients that probably don’t have a permanent spot in your refrigerator. So, some planning ahead is required but certainly not difficult. For some reason, when I made this recipe, I did happen to have most items on hand. So, it is not entirely out of the question. For some reason, spinach usually ends up in the compost pile here. By the time I get around to cooking it all, it has turned. However, that was not the case in this scenario! Lucky us! 

Extra Cheese!

Can I Make This Ahead of Time?

Yes! You can keep a filled and prepared pastry in the fridge, covered in plastic wrap until you’re ready to bake and serve for up to 24 hours. Just note that this may affect your baking time.

egg wash on ham and cheese pastry puff

How to Store

These are best enjoyed fresh. However, if you have any leftovers, you will want to refrigerate them. They will last 2-3 days in the refrigerator, but the puff pastry will lose its crispy, flakey layers. To reheat them, warm them up in the air fryer or oven.

Ham and Cheese Pastry Puff
puff-blog6
5 from 13 votes

Ham and Cheese Puffs

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
This breakfast, lunch, or dinner treat is a delicious buttery and flaky puff pastry enveloping a mixture of hot ham, melty swiss cheese, and fresh spinach.

Ingredients

  • 2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed according to package directions
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 cup whole milk, room temperature
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper
  • 2 cups cooked ham, diced
  • 2 cups fresh spinach
  • 1½ cup Swiss cheese, grated and divided
  • 1 large egg white, lightly beaten

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
  • Cut the puff pastry sheets into 5-inch (13cm) squares. Set aside in the refrigerator.
  • Melt butter over medium heat in a saucepan. Add flour and salt. Cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
  • Slowly pour in the milk, while whisking constantly, until smooth and boiling.
  • Reduce heat to low and allow the mixture to simmer, stirring occasionally, until it begins to thicken.
  • Add in spinach and cook for 1 minute, or until wilted.
  • Add ham and 1 cup of Swiss cheese and stir to combine. Remove from heat and set the mixture aside.
  • Arrange the puff pastry squares evenly on the prepared baking sheet.
  • Top with a heaping spoonful of ham and cheese mixture, and sprinkle with grated cheese.
  • Fold the corners up onto the top, forming a smaller square.
  • Brush the pastry with the egg wash, making sure to coat all sides.
  • Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until puffed and golden.

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Meet Amanda Rettke

Amanda Rettke is the creator of I Am Baker, and the bestselling author of Surprise Inside Cakes: Amazing Cakes for Every Occasion – With a Little Something Extra Inside.Over the course of her 15+ year blogging adventure, she has been featured in and collaborated with the Food Network, New York Times, LA Times, Country Living Magazine, People Magazine, Epicurious, Brides, Romantic Homes, life:beautiful, Publishers Weekly, The Daily Mail, Star Tribune, The Globe and Mail, DailyCandy, YumSugar, The Knot, The Kitchn, and Parade, to name a few.

Reader Comments

  1. With all the positive comments, I can’t wait to make these!
    How many layers of puff pastry used for each ‘sandwich’?
    How many servings does this recipe make?

    1. Local grocery was out of puff pastry so decided to try it on a pizza crust. Made a delicious pizza. Grandson said it was his new favorite meal! Will make again.

  2. Totally delicious. Even my extremely picky husband loved them. Thank you so much for this keeper!

  3. I make this but I changed the cheese to gruyere and cut he puff pastry sheet into 9 squares.
    I wanted an appetizer and this made 12 servings everyone loved it.

  4. This looks like a delicious recipe for my lunch ladies. I’m assuming you can make the filling beforehand, then pop everything into the oven for the time you need it. Great recipe idea.

  5. Delicious!!! My son found this recipe; he was alarmed when he saw that we were having ham leftovers for the foreseeable future after Easter. The entire family was delighted with this dinner, even my cheese-hating (gasp!) husband!

  6. I made these last week for lunch with friends. Was anxious to try. They were fabulous. Gone before I could take photo. Only issue was 3-4 spread open but they all got eaten.
    Wondering if you could mske a reuben filling? I think that would work too.
    Keep these recipes coming.

  7. I made these and although they taste delicious, they all opened up and were not pretty. Can you tell me how to avoid them all opening up while baking?

  8. Made these and I have to say the recipient is good but use twice or triple the amount of dough sheets. I had only two as per recipe but the filling was for 6 sheets. Would try again but definitely cut the filling in half

  9. This is delicious! My puff pastry opened up some in the oven but I had pinched the bottom corners so nothing leaked out. I’ll work on that as this will have a spot in our regular breakfast rotation from now on.

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