Colorful Tea Sandwich Ideas to Serve at Your Next Gathering

The next time you have an afternoon tea (and you should), or you're planning a cocktail party and need easy-to-assemble hors d'oeuvres, turn to this Instagram-worthy array of sweet and savory tea sandwiches. They taste as vibrant as they look, and bring a bright new spin to a classic finger food.

Choose Your Produce

To prep a Roy G. Biv array of fruits and vegetables, from red strawberries to golden or violet beets and the shades in between, start by sourcing your ingredients. Almost any produce is fair game for the rainbow approach to fillings. The exceptions are those that are very firm, like apples and carrots, which will sploosh out when someone takes a bite.

For savory fillings, we like avocados, cucumbers, cooked red and golden beets, and sprouts. For sweet fillings, try strawberries or blackberries.

The Right Bread

Use a fluffy presliced sandwich bread as the canvas for your finger sandwiches. This is not the time for homemade sourdough or bakery brioche.

How to Make Our Rainbow Tea Sandwiches

For 12 rectangular tea sandwiches (six sweet and six savory), you'll need:

• 8 slices sandwich bread
• 3 ounces Boursin cheese
• 3 ounces cream cheese
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 3/4 cup sliced vegetables (savory fillings)
• 3/4 cup sliced fruit (sweet fillings)

For Savory Sandwiches: Let ½ cup Boursin cheese come to room temperature. Prep 3/4 cup of sliced vegetables.

For Sweet Sandwiches: Mix 3 ounces of softened cream cheese with 1 tablespoon of honey. Slice or halve 3/4 cup fresh fruit.

The Method

For both sweet and savory sandwiches, the process is the same once you've prepared the cheese spread and the fruits or vegetables:

1. Spread four slices of sandwich bread with the cheese mixture.
2. Layer two slices with fruit, and two slices with vegetables.
3. Top with remaining slices of bread.
4. Use a serrated knife to cut the crusts off the sandwiches. Cut each sandwich into 3 rectangles. (Alternatively, cut each sandwich into 4 triangles.)

Make Ahead

Tea sandwiches are best served soon after they're made, before the edges of the bread have time to dry out. If you're putting together a big spread and need to get as much ready ahead of time as possible, cover the sandwiches tightly and refrigerate for up to two hours.

Serving Suggestions

Yes, these easy finger sandwiches are a natural for tea, whether black, green, or herbal, but they also pair well with a glass of white wine or rosé, and all kinds of spritzes and other cocktails.

Recipe and food styling by Riley Wofford; prop styling by Suzie Myers.