Make a Cucumber Cream Cheese Sandwich

A cucumber cream cheese sandwich is a surprisingly versatile choice for lunch or a gathering of friends. It is easy to make, healthy, elegant, and can even be filling, depending upon your choice of bread. It requires very few ingredients, and lends itself well to experimentation. Follow our advice for how to put together the perfect cucumber cream cheese sandwich!

Ingredients

• 4 ounces cream cheese (softened, at room temperature)
• ½-1 cucumber, depending upon size
• salt to taste
• freshly ground black pepper to taste

Optional Ingredients

• NOTE: You will select different ingredients for different filling options.
• fresh lemon juice (to taste, but approximately 2 tablespoons)
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped dill
• 1-2 ounces goat cheese
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1-2 tablespoons of Ranch dressing OR up to ½ packet of dry Ranch dressing mix

Steps

Choosing Your Ingredients

1. Select your bread. Classic cucumber cream cheese sandwiches are dainty treats, typically served as a snack or part of a tea service and are usually made with white bread.
   • Traditional English cucumber sandwiches rely upon soft white bread that won't compete with the flavor or texture of the fillings.
   • Of course, if you want a heartier meal, break traditional and experiment with a strong rye or a sweet brown bread.
   • You can even try sweeter white-flour breads like brioche, which is made with egg and butter.
2. Select your cucumber. Most recipes for cucumber sandwiches suggest that you use seedless English cucumbers, which are readily available in most grocery stores. You don't have to stick to this variety, though. Making cucumber cream cheese sandwiches can be a great way to use up cucumbers from your garden harvest.
   • You should choose a “burpless” variety, which has lower levels of cucurbitacin, a natural organic compound that is responsible for some cucumbers' bitter flavor and tendency to cause stomach upset in people.
   • Some great choices are as follows: striped Armenian cucumbers, the Suyon Long, the Straight Eight, the Lemon Cucumber (which has, as the name suggests, a lemony flavor), and the Sumter (a particularly disease-resistant variety).
   • All of these are known among gardeners as good “eating” pickles. Save the cucumbers with high levels of cucurbitacin for pickling.
3. Select your cream cheese mixture. A classic cucumber cream cheese sandwich is an elegant example of simplicity, relying only upon the creamy tanginess of cream cheese, paired with the crisp crunch of a cucumber housed between two pillowy pieces of white bread. There's nothing wrong with breaking from tradition now and again, though! Experiment with these different filling options:
   • Option #1: Mix 4 ounces cream cheese with 1-2 ounces of goat cheese. Mix in fresh lemon juice to taste (about 1-2 tablespoons), and salt and pepper to taste.
   • Option #2: Mix 4 ounces of cream cheese with 2 tablespoons of finely chopped dill. Mix in fresh lemon juice to taste (about 1-2 tablespoons, but more if you'd like), and season with salt and pepper.
   • Option #3: For a zestier filling, mix 4 ounces of cream cheese with 1/4 cup of mayonnaise. Add in either 1-2 tablespoons of Ranch dressing OR about ½ packet of dry Ranch dressing seasoning mix (start with a small amount of dressing—whether it's wet or dry—and increase as needed). Season with salt and pepper to taste, but know that you may need less salt with this filling mixture.

Making the Sandwiches

1. Mix the filling. Once you've selected your choice of filling, simply mix all of the ingredients together in a medium sized bowl.
   • Make sure that the cream cheese has softened to room temperature, or you may have a difficult time getting a smooth texture.
   • You may also mix the ingredients together in a stand mixer.
2. Prepare the cucumber. Most recipes call for you to peel the cucumber. This is optional, though. If you like the flavor of the peel or like the added crunch it brings to your sandwich, leave them on.
   • If your cucumber has seeds, consider removing them. This will result in a crunchier final sandwich, but many chefs lament the loss of the flavor that the seeds/middle of the cucumber lends.
   • Slice the cucumbers very thinly. It's easiest to cut your cucumber into thin rounds, but some chefs prefer to cut the cucumber length-wise.
   • You can also cut the cucumbers on a bias: Angle your knife forty-five degrees to your left (imagine a clock in front of you: place the tip of the knife at 10 o'clock and the handle of the knife down towards 4 o'clock). Proceed to cut into thin slices.
3. Put the sandwich together. Spread your filling very thinly on both sides of the bread, and then layer your sliced cucumbers on one piece of bread.
   • Though you've already seasoned your filling, you may want to sprinkle just a bit of salt and/or pepper on top of the cucumbers.
   • Place a second piece of bread (which has also been spread with the filling) on top of the cucumbers, and firmly press down.
4. Cut the crusts off the bread and serve. It's traditional to remove the crusts from the sandwiches, but this is an optional step. Your final sandwich will look more elegant and refined if you remove the crusts, so we definitely recommend cutting off the crusts if you'll be serving them to guests.
   • Experiment with cutting them into dainty shapes such as triangles or slim fingers. However you cut them, cut neatly and consistently. Snack on any mis-cuts or leftovers yourself in the kitchen!
   • Once you've finished cutting your sandwiches—or once you've finished putting the sandwiches together if you are a crust-lover—all that remains to be done is to serve and enjoy them!
5. Finished.

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Sources and Citations

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