Ham and Cheese Christmas Trees
This delicious ham and cheese Christmas tree appetizer is an easy to make, tasty appetizer that’s not only festive but also super flavorful!
Servings: 8 trees
Calories: 545kcal
Ingredients
- 17.3 oz sheet puffy pastry (two sheets) thawed
- 6 slices ham
- 6 slices cheese
- 2 TBS butter melted
- 1 tsp garlic salt
- 2 TBS fresh chopped parsley
- 4 oz block cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Take one sheet of thawed puff pastry and lay it on your baking sheet.17.3 oz sheet puffy pastry (two sheets)
- Arrange the sliced ham so that it covers the entire sheet of puff pastry, leaving a little space between the ham and the edge of the puff pastry.6 slices ham
- Add your cheese slices right on top of the ham slices.6 slices cheese
- Finish off the sandwich layers by adding the second piece of puff pastry right on top of the cheese.
- With your pastry layered, cut eight equal strips using a pizza cutter. Cut the sheet width-wise so your trees don’t end up long and skinny.
- Take one strip and fold it into the shape of a tree. To do this, turn your strip so you can see the ham and cheese inside. At roughly a fourth of the length of the strip, fold it on top of itself. Continue to fold the pastry strip on top of itself, making sure to get shorter with each level until you have the shape of a tree.
- Take your skewer and gently push through each layer of the tree, leaving at least an inch of skewer at the top for the star cutout later. Repeat this with all of your strips so you have eight little ham and cheese Christmas tree appetizers!
- Place the assembled trees onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and put them in the oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly golden brown.
- While the trees are baking, melt the butter. Combine garlic salt and parsley with the butter in a small bowl and set aside.2 TBS butter, 1 tsp garlic salt, 2 TBS fresh chopped parsley
- Once the trees are golden brown, remove the trees from the oven and immediately brush lightly with the garlic butter mixture.
- Cut out small star shapes using a cookie cutter.4 oz block cheddar cheese
- Once the trees are cool enough to handle, gently glide the star onto the top of the skewer. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
Soak skewers ahead of time to get rid of splinters. Make sure to use room temperature water and allow them to sit in the water for roughly thirty minutes before using.
Assemble the trees ahead of time and then place them in the fridge wrapped in plastic wrap until ready to bake.
Serve with a variety of dipping sauces like this pesto or ranch.
Store in an airtight container for up to one week in the fridge.
Nutrition
Calories: 545kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 40g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 18g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 52mg | Sodium: 934mg | Potassium: 131mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 481IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 258mg | Iron: 2mg