Crispy and flaky warm croissants stuffed with ham, spinach and melted cheese are the best way to start the day! Spread with a layer of honey and mustard, these are quick and easy enough for breakfast on the go, but also fancy enjoy to serve up as brunch for guests. Easy to adapt, this is one of our favourite ways to use croissants and great for using croissants that have gone a little stale.
These ham and cheese croissants are so easy to make. You just stuff the cheese, ham and spinach in to the croissants, not forgetting the honey and mustard sauce, and bake for 8 minutes until the cheese melts and the croissants get extra crispy. You can easily double or triple this recipe making them great for serving up to guests for an easy and impressive brunch.
If you are looking for other ways to use croissants, then why not try our Croissant French Toast Bake - it's perfect for breakfast for a crowd.
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Ingredients needed
- Croissants - To make this super easy, we bought croissants from the bakery. If you want to make your own croissants, then go for it! We used large croissants, but you could use mini ones too. You can also use croissants that are a couple of days old and going a little stale
- Ham - You can use any ham you like. We used a honey roast ham, but you could also use leftovers from our Slow Cooker Gammon. We wouldn't recommend using breaded ham though, as the breading can burn in the oven.
- Cheese - We used Gouda, but we have given some other options below.
- Spinach - This is an easy way to give a bit of a nutritious boost to the ham and cheese croissants. You could use rocket (arugula) instead.
- Honey - Use a good quality runny honey.
- Mustard - We used Dijon, but you could swap this for wholegrain if you prefer.
A full ingredients list with measurements is in the recipe card below.
How to make a ham and cheese croissant - Step by step
One: Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/Gas 5. Mix together the honey and mustard.
Two: Using a sharp, serrated knife, slice the croissants in half lengthways. Spread the honey/mustard over the bottom section of the croissant.
Three: Fill the croissant with ham, cheese and spinach.
Four: Bake for 7-8 minutes.
Why should you try it?
- Quick and easy - These take just a minute to put together and then 7-8 minutes in the oven the get melty and crispy. So simple!
- Great for entertaining - Got friends coming round for brunch? Or maybe hosting a Mother's Day breakfast? Make up a big batch of these and they will seriously impress.
- Adaptable - We have give lots of options below of different meat, cheese and vegetables you can put in these croissants.
Variations
Meat - We used a honey roast ham, but any ham will work. You could also use slices or roast chicken or something like chorizo or pepperoni which have lots of flavour.
Cheese - We used Gouda, as it has a light nutty flavour and doesn't overpower the croissants and still gets nice and melty when cooked. However, you could use cheddar, mozzarella, Emmental or Gruyère.
Vegetables - We added some spinach to give these a nutrient boost, but you could add some artichoke or roasted red peppers instead.
What to serve with ham and cheese croissant
These are a pretty indulgent breakfast, so we wouldn't usually serve them with anything else but some berries and a coffee. If you wanted to serve them with some eggs, then why not try our Microwave Poached Eggs or Fluffy Microwave Scrambled Eggs?
If you are looking for some hot drinks to serve with this, then why not try one of these:
- Vegan Eggnog
- Chai Tea Latte
- Cinnamon Coffee
- Slow Cooker Hot Chocolate
- Pumpkin Spice Latte
- Peppermint Hot Chocolate
- Cinnamon Mocha
Storage
These croissants are best eaten straight after cooking. However, if you have any leftover then you can keep them in an air tight container in the fridge to ensure the ham and cheese stays fresh. You can then reheat them in the oven for 3-4 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
These are not the most nutrient dense breakfast/brunch, however adding some spinach helps with that. You can use a lower fat cheese if you want to save some calories.
There are 390 calories for a large croissant.
They take about 7-8 minutes in the oven, but that depends on your oven. Check them after about 6 minutes to make sure they aren't burning.
No, these are definitely not vegan. However, you could make a vegan version of these with vegan croissants, a ham and cheese alternative and swap the honey for maple syrup.
If you use a gluten free croissant and make sure that there is no cross contamination then these can be gluten free.
You can microwave these for 1 minute and the cheese will melt, however the croissants won't be crispy.
Yes, you can cook these in the air fryer at 180°C for 4-5 minutes.
Yes, as long as you have a baking tray/dish big enough you can make as many of these at the same time as you like.
Yes, you can prepare these up to two days in advance. Assemble the croissants and put them on a baking tray and cover tightly with foil and put them in the fridge. Take them out of the fridge and take the foil off and put them in the oven. They might need a couple of minutes longer in the oven if they are coming cold out of the fridge.
Extra tips
- Instead of the honey and mustard spread on the croissants, you could make a garlic and herb butter and spread that on instead. It would kind of be like garlic bread croissants.
- You can swap the Dijon mustard for wholegrain if you want a stronger flavour.
- For some extra flavour, sprinkle some everything bagel seasoning or poppy seeds on top of the croissants before baking.
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Recipe
Ham and Cheese Croissant
Ingredients
- 2 croissants
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 30 g sliced ham
- 60 g cheese slice
- 40 g spinach
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/Gas 5. Mix together the honey and mustard.1 teaspoon honey, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- Using a sharp, serrated knife, slice the croissants in half lengthways. Spread the honey/mustard over the bottom section of the croissant.2 croissants
- Fill the croissant with ham, cheese and spinach.30 g sliced ham, 60 g cheese slice, 40 g spinach
- Bake for 7-8 minutes.
Notes
- Instead of the honey and mustard spread on the croissants, you could make a garlic and herb butter and spread that on instead. It would kind of be like garlic bread croissants.
- You can swap the Dijon mustard for wholegrain if you want a stronger flavour.
- For some extra flavour, sprinkle some everything bagel seasoning or poppy seeds on top of the croissants before baking.
Nutritional Information
Heidy
These ham and cheese croissants turned out perfect. I made them for the girl's lunches, and I made more for my husband and me. Top-notch! I will be saving this recipe for sure.
Toni
I love it!! This is so easy to make and so good! Everyone at my house enjoyed it! Thanks for the idea and the recipe!
Mindee Taylor
Simple and delicious! Not to mention looks like it's from a restaurant!
Michelle
My kids' favourite lunch! Gotta have that dijon mustard :) Yum!
Gloria
I can eat croissants at any meal of the day. This is perfect for brunch, lunch, and dinner too. Sandwich perfection.
Natalie
Yum, looks delicious. Such a lovely family breakfast idea. I'll save this recipe and make it this weekend. Thanks for idea!
Beth
I love the idea of a sandwich with that flaky, buttery roll. I usually just eat them solo, so I'm looking forward to doing something new with them.
Claudia Lamascolo
Made these in mini croissants for our appetizers on game day they were a big hit~
Danielle
This sounds so yummy! This is the way I want to start my day :-) Love the mustard!
Gina
It feels like I'm in a French cafe for lunch with this delicious baked croissant! Love the little bit of dijon, totally amps up the flavors in this simple sandwich.