These caviar tartines are a super luxurious, easy way to start the morning. You start with toasted whole-grain, sourdough bread, and then top it with smoked salmon and delicate, briny caviar. Chopped fresh herbs and thinly sliced red onion bring it all together for an easy, nutrient-dense breakfast.
Jump to Recipe | What is it? | Nutrition | Where to Find It | Variations
What is it?
A tartine is a French-style open-face sandwich typically prepared on toasted bread. It's often topped with a wide variety of foods, such as various spreads, herbs, vegetables, fruits, or charcuterie.
In this version, we top toasted whole-grain sourdough bread with cream cheese, delicate smoked salmon, briny caviar as well as fresh herbs and spices. Caviar is the salt-cured roe (or eggs) of the sturgeon species, and it has a delicate saltiness with underlined by very subtle notes of seaweed or fresh fish.
What makes it so good?
All fish roe, including caviar, are nutrient-dense foods and exceptionally rich in vitamin B12 and omega-3 fatty acids. Further, roe and caviar also tend to be plentiful in vitamins A and D, as well as minerals such as selenium and magnesium (1).
By comparison, a single tablespoon of caviar contains about as much magnesium as half a cup of Swiss chard and as much B12 as four ounces of lamb (2). In essence, it's an extremely nutrient-dense food and is, in some cultures, particularly prized for men and women who are trying to conceive (3).
Where to find it?
You can find caviar in many gourmet and specialty shops; however, it's easy to order it online too. The Caviar Co., which focuses on sustainably farmed caviar, sent us a jar of their sturgeon caviar for this recipe, and you can order directly from them online. While caviar is expensive, they have better prices overall and many options.
Caviar is expensive, owing to strict import regulations and relative rarity. More sustainable options, including caviar produced from sustainable sturgeon farms in the U.S., tend to have better prices overall. Alternatively, trout roe, salmon roe, and whitefish roe offer many of the same benefits of true caviar at a much more affordable price.
Caviar Tartine Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 slices toasted sourdough bread
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 2 ounces smoked salmon
- 1 ounce caviar
- ¼ cup chopped fresh herbs (chives, dill, parsley, chervil, etc.)
- ½ teaspoon caraway seeds
- ½ teaspoon nigella seeds
- thinly sliced red onion (as needed)
Instructions
- Spread the toast with cream cheese, and then arrange the smoked salmon over the cream cheese. Add a dollop of caviar to each tartine, and then sprinkle with fresh herbs, caraway and nigella seeds, and red onion. Serve immediately.
Variations
Try salmon or trout roe in place of caviar. True caviar comes from sturgeon; however, salmon and trout roe offer both a similar flavor and nutritional profile at a fraction of the cost.
Swap smoked salmon for avocado, as both have a lovely creaminess, and the salty, briny notes of caviar work well with avocado, too.
Sourdough bagels work well in place of toasted sourdough bread.
References
- Nutritiondata.com (Accessed November, 2021)
- Price, W. DDS (2009) Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, Price-Pottenger Nutritional Foundation
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