Baked Hawaiian Roll Ham and Cheese Sliders

These ham and cheese sandwiches are baked in Hawaiian rolls with a buttery mustard poppy seed topping.  They are a classic party appetizer, but my family eats them for lunch and dinner, too!  Serve these ham and cheese sliders right from the oven to the table!

I don’t know about you, but these are one of my favorite appetizers to eat at a party.  Every get-together that has food, I always hope to find these on the table somewhere.  Many times I’ve been disappointed.  I think we sometimes try to get too innovative and forget about these classics.  So, I’m sharing the recipe to encourage more of you to get back to the classic recipes and ensure they grace our party tables!  🙂

Full honesty here — we don’t only eat these at parties, but also for lunch or dinner.  It’s so easy to throw together for a quick weeknight meal or a Sunday afternoon lunch.  Not only can you entertain party guests with these, but dinner guests, too.

The major brand of Hawaiian rolls can be expensive, which is why I always keep my eye out for the store brand version.  Our local grocery store carries their copycat version for at least $2 cheaper than the major brand, but they can be hard to keep in stock.

The recipe below is 12 servings as an appetizer — so more like 6 servings as a lunch/dinner yield.  You can easily double the recipe and use either a larger pan or two pans.

I do not separate the rolls until after they’re baked.  Instead, I use a large serrated knife to slice all 12 rolls in half while they are still connected, so that I have two large halves.  Then I layer all the fillings (mayo on the top side, cheese and ham on the bottom side) and place the two halves back together.  Place in the pan and top with the buttery mustard glaze and bake!  Easy peasy.  Once they come out of the oven you can transfer the whole thing to a cutting board or slice them into their separate sandwiches right from the pan.

There are many variations you can make of these sliders — pizza, meatball, Philly, etc.  I’m hoping to share more with you soon!

A few items that might help you with this recipe:
Serrated bread knife (a large one so you can cut through the whole loaf of rolls at once)
Poppy seeds (you can find these at your store, but I thought I’d give a visual for those who aren’t familiar)

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Baked Hawaiian Roll Ham and Cheese Sliders

These ham and cheese sandwiches are baked in Hawaiian rolls with a buttery mustard poppy seed topping. They are a classic party appetizer, but my family eats them for lunch and dinner, too! Serve these ham and cheese sliders right from the oven to the table!

Course Appetizer, Main Course, Tailgate

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Resting Time 10 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Servings 12 appetizer servings

Ingredients

• 1 package (12 ct.) Hawaiian sweet dinner rolls
• 6 slices Swiss cheese
• 8 ounces sliced deli ham more or less to taste
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup butter melted
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• 2 teaspoons poppy seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (1/4 tsp if using salted butter)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
   

2. Using a large serrated bread knife, slice all 12 rolls in half horizontally so that you have one large top half and one large bottom half.  (Do not pull the rolls apart.) 
   

3. Place the bottom half in a baking dish and layer evenly with cheese then ham.  Spread mayonnaise on the top half then replace over the top of the bottom layer.
   

4. In a medium bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients.  Pour and spread evenly over top of the rolls.  Cover with foil and let rest for 10 minutes.
   

5. Bake for 10 minutes, uncover and bake an additional 2-3 minutes until the tops are golden and crisp.  Serve warm.