Vegan Afternoon Tea Sandwiches

These are four simple and delicious vegan afternoon tea sandwiches. I’ve put together four different vegan sandwich fillings which compliment each other deliciously. These vegan finger sandwiches are filled with vegan pesto mayo and roasted pepper, chickpea tuna-style salad, hummus with cucumber and roasted tomato, and vegan Cheddar and onion.

These sandwiches are a perfect addition to any afternoon tea. They could also be served at a summer picnic.

Tips for making vegan afternoon tea sandwiches

Sandwiches are pretty simple to make and you don’t need to be skilled in the kitchen to make these. However, I have a few tips to help you perfect them.

Roasted red pepper and vegan pesto mayo

• Steam your roasted red peppers before peeling the skin. This makes it easier to peel off the skins in one piece.
• If you don’t like vegan mayo, just make this with vegan pesto.

Chickpea ‘tuna’ salad

• Make sure your chickpeas are mashed sufficiently. You don’t want to turn your chickpeas into a smooth paste, however you don’t want any whole chickpeas either. For the best texture make sure each chickpea is at least somewhat smashed.
• Add nori for a more fishy flavour. I finely chopped half a sheet of nori to add a fishy flavour to the chickpeas. You could also add in some vegan furikake seasoning, if you like.
• Pat your cucumbers with kitchen towel so they don’t make your sandwiches soggy.

Hummus, cucumber and roasted tomato

• Remove the seeds from the tomato before roasting. This will make sure they’re not too moist. You can also pat them dry with kitchen towel once they’re cooked.
• Use your favourite hummus. Flavoured hummus, such as red pepper or caramelised onion, will work well in these sandwiches.

Vegan Cheddar and onion

• Use a block of vegan Cheddar so you can grate it. I could only find vegan slices in the supermarket so finely chopped them. This meant that the Cheddar and onion mix was not very cohesive. This makes it more difficult to slice your sandwiches.
• If you can’t find nutritional yeast then you can leave it out. Nutritional yeast adds an extra nutty, cheesy flavour. However, your sandwiches will still be yummy without it.

More vegan sandwich ideas

There are plenty more vegan sandwich fillings you could make for a vegan afternoon tea:

• Vegan coronation chickpeas
• Avocado, tomato, cucumber, spinach, hummus and red onion
• Vegan ham and mustard
• Vegan tofu ‘egg’ mayo
• Vegan cream cheese and cucumber

Can you make sandwiches a day ahead?

It is best to eat these sandwiches whilst they are as fresh as possible. However, if you need to make them ahead of time there are some steps you can take to keep them fresh:

• Keep the crusts on and only slice your sandwiches just before serving.
• Wrap the sandwiches in cling film. This prevents them from drying out and absorbing the flavours of the fridge.
• Butter every slice of bread. This prevents the fillings from making the bread soggy.

How to use up sandwich crusts

Traditionally, you would slice the crusts off after making the sandwich. This will ensure that the filling goes right to the edge of the sandwich. However, if you’d rather be able to use the crusts then slice them off first.

The crusts can then be used to make bread crumbs. I have also found that bread crusts taste delicious in bread and butter pudding.

The best way to serve afternoon tea sandwiches

I like to serve my sandwiches on a 3 tiered cake stand. I recommend this porcelain cake stand or this floral cake stand.

Vegan afternoon tea sandwiches: similar recipes

• Vegetarian afternoon tea sandwiches
• Mozzarella and pesto grilled cheese
• Goat cheese and apricot panini
• Vegan roast dinner

Vegan Afternoon Tea Sandwiches

5 from 1 vote

Four delicious and vegan sandwich fillings for afternoon tea finger sandwiches.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 1 hour hr

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Servings: 24 sandwiches

Course: Afternoon Tea

Cuisine: British

Calories: 101

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

Roasted red pepper and vegan pesto mayo

• 2 red bell peppers*
• 4 slices white or wholegrain bread
• vegan butter
• 2 tbsp vegan mayo
• 1½ tbsp vegan pesto
• ½ tsp fresh lemon juice

Chickpea tuna salad

• 175g cooked chickpeas rinsed, drained and patted dry
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 4 tbsp vegan mayo
• 3 tbsp red onion finely chopped
• ¼ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp dijon mustard
• ½ tsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp crushed nori sheet
• salt and pepper
• 4 slices wholegrain or white bread
• vegan butter
• 12 thin slices of cucumber

Hummus, cucumber and roasted tomato.

• 8 cherry or small plum tomatoes** halved
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 12 thin slices of cucumber
• 1 handful baby spinach leaves
• 6 tbsp hummus
• 4 slices wholegrain bread
• vegan butter

Vegan cheddar and onion

• 100g/3½oz vegan Cheddar grated
• 3 tbsp small red onion finely chopped
• 1 spring onion finely chopped
• 3 tbsp vegan mayo
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 slices white or wholegrain bread
• vegan butter
• 1 handful fresh lettuce shredded

Method

 

Roasted red pepper and vegan pesto mayo

1. Set your oven to 200℃/180℃ fan (390℉/355℉).
2. Slice your peppers in half lengthways. Remove stem and seeds.
3. Place cut side down on a lined baking tray and roast for 30-35 minutes, or until the skin is blackened.
4. Place in a large bowl and cover with a plate. Let steam for 10 minutes.
5. Once the peppers are cool enough to handle, peel off the blackened skin.
6. Slice each half into 3 wide strips.
7. In a small bowl combine the pesto, mayo and lemon juice.
8. Spread a little vegan butter on one side of each piece of bread. Spread a quarter of the pesto mayo onto each slice. Top 2 of the slices with 6 pepper slices each.
9. Top with the other 2 slices, mayo side down. Carefully remove the crusts and slice each sandwich into 3 finger sandwiches.

Chickpea 'tuna' salad

1. In a medium bowl roughly mash the chickpeas with the back of a fork until no whole chickpeas remain.
2. Add in the lemon juice, mayo, onion, garlic powder, mustard, soy sauce and nori. Season to taste with salt and pepper and stir until well combined.
3. Butter each slice of wholegrain bread. Cover 2 of the slices with 6 slices of cucumber each. Top these with half of the chickpea mixture each.
4. Place the remaining slices of bread, butter side down, on top of the chickpeas.
5. Carefully remove the crusts and slice each sandwich into 3 finger sandwiches.

Hummus, cucumber and roasted tomato

1. Set the oven to 200℃/180℃ fan (390℉/355℉).
2. Halve the tomatoes and scoop out the seeds.
3. Place in a small roasting dish. Drizzle with the olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper. Roast for 20-25 minutes.
4. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Pat dry with kitchen towel.
5. Butter each slice of bread on one side.
6. Spread 1½ tbsp of hummus onto each slice of bread.
7. Top 2 of the slices with half of the spinach, 6 slices of cucumber and half of the tomatoes each.
8. Top with the remaining slices of bread, hummus side down.
9. Carefully remove the crusts and slice each sandwich into 3 finger sandwiches.

Vegan cheese and onion

1. Combine the vegan Cheddar, red onion, spring onion, vegan mayo, lemon juice and nutritional yeast together in a small bowl.
2. Butter each slice of bread on one side. Place a small handful of shredded lettuce onto two of the slices.
3. Divide the cheese mix onto the 2 slices of bread with the lettuce on top.
4. Top with the other slices of bread, butter side down.
5. Carefully remove the crusts and slice each sandwich into 3 finger sandwiches.

Notes

*Alternatively you can buy jarred roasted red peppers. 

**If you don’t want to roast your own tomatoes, you can use jarred sun-dried or semi-dried tomatoes