Grilled ham and havarti sandwich is a delicious upgrade to soup and sandwich night. Pair this hot ham sandwich with creamy havarti cheese, peppery arugula, and fresh pears with a cozy vegetable soup for an easy dinner your family will love.
If you love a grilled sandwich and soup for dinner but are looking for a delicious variation to change things up, this easy grilled ham and havarti sandwich is exactly what you're looking for.
Let me tell you all the yummy flavors going on in there:
Sliced ham, fresh pear, peppery arugula, creamy havarti cheese, tangy Dijon mustard, with a touch of pepper and olive oil in place of the butter for grilling.
This, my friends, is autumn all rolled up in a sandwich.
The best part? You could easily assemble one of these for yourself and make just a plain grilled cheese or grilled cheese with ham for the kids!
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Why This is the Best Recipe
I love creative and different sandwich flavors, I always order them when I spot them at a deli. I think this is the best ham and havarti sandwich recipe because:
- Fresh Fruit & Veggies: Talk about a boost of flavor, I love how much the fresh arugula and fresh pear slices add to this sandwich.
- Perfect Melting Cheese: Have you grilled a havarti sandwich yet? Wait till you see how perfectly it melts.
- Great Recipe for Leftover Ham: Just made a holiday ham? This would be a wonderful way to use it up.
Ingredients
Sandwiches are one of my favorite things to cook because they are just so easy.
All you need to make this recipe is:
- Sliced Bread: I recommend my Italian bread, a caraway rye bread, or any other crusty bread you love. If you can find it, a dill bread would be amazing.
- Ham: Thinly sliced deli ham would be my first choice for most nights but if we have leftover spiral ham or glazed ham, I'm totally using that.
- Havarti Cheese: You could use a plain havarti but it also comes in dill or caraway seed varieties, too. I love the addition of caraway seeds so that's my pick.
- Fresh Arugula: If you can't find arugula, this would be a good baby spinach recipe.
- Fresh Pear: Make sure to pick one that is firm but gives slightly when you squeeze it.
- Dijon Mustard
- Pepper
- Olive Oil
How to Build the Sandwich
Spread the Dijon mustard on one side of a piece of the bread.
Place one slice of havarti cheese on top.
Add the ham, some cracked pepper, the pear slices, and the fresh arugula.
Place the second piece of havarti on top.
Finish the sandwich with the second piece of bread.
Griddle the Sandwich
Drizzle the olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat.
Griddle the sandwich on both sides until the bread is golden brown and the cheese has melted.
Serving Suggestions
This simple fall sandwich is such an easy idea for keeping in your dinner rotation.
Pair it with a comforting and cozy soup for a hearty lunch or light dinner all season long.
I think the flavors of the ham and havarti would pair best with:
Corn Chowder: This sweet corn chowder has savory bacon bits and tastes even better with fresh chives over the top.
Irish Potato Soup: This cozy Irish potato soup has tons of veggies hiding in that pureed broth.
Tomato Bisque: You can't go wrong with a classic tomato bisque soup, it was made to go with a grilled cheese sandwich.
Tuscan Veggie Soup: My Tuscan chicken soup (with or without the chicken added) would be a perfect match for the ham and cheese in this recipe.
More Sandwich Recipes
Looking for more sandwiches for your meal rotation? Don't miss these family favorites:
📖 Recipe
Grilled Ham and Havarti Sandwiches
Ingredients
- 2 slices crusty bread
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2 - 3 slices deli ham
- 2 - 3 thin slices of fresh pear
- 2 slices of Havarti cheese
- ¼ cup arugula leaves
- Fresh cracked pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil for the pan
Instructions
- Spread a scant amount of mustard on one slice of bread.
- Top with a slice of havarti cheese, then the ham, the cracked pepper, pear slices, and fresh arugula. Add the second slice of havarti to the top of the stack.
- Add the second piece of bread to form the sandwich.
- Brush each side of the outside of the sandwich with olive oil and grill it in a saute pan or on a griddle over medium heat until bread is toasty golden brown and the cheese has melted.
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Renee
This sounds AWESOME!! John and Brent would make a gag face at me, but it's perfect because, same as you, I can make THIS for me and boring grilled cheese for them. You definitely win 🙂