Tuna Nicoise Toast from Bon Appetit

I never thought I’d be writing a post to promote canned foods, but this is a very weird time we are living in. (Not that there’s anything wrong with canned food but you know what I mean!) Before social distancing was necessary, I used to look for excuses to stay home with my boys and just hang out, make some bread or something that involved a little time. But now that we’ve been isolated for over 2 weeks, I’m really missing those old germy baby hangs like the library or the children’s museum’s or even just Target. I have been sort of uninspired to cook despite all the amazing posting I’ve seen fellow food bloggers posting about great things to cook while in quarantine. Friends I didn’t even know could cook are all of a sudden posting amazing looking recipes and people are talking about baking bread and making pasta. It’s a home cooking revolution that I was already a part of but now feel, just meh. But I digress, making this tuna nicoise toast did help reawaken my love for cooking a little bit yesterday, especially watching my 3 year old Jack in a zen state just peeling the hard boiled eggs over a bowl of water. He looked so focused and calm. And it was nice to tear up the last of my fresh herbs over the toast and taste the freshness of the mint and basil.

This recipe comes from one of my favorite sites to cook from bonappetit.com. I’ve made this toast so many times now that I just have the measurements scribbled on a piece of paper hanging in one of my kitchen cabinets for reference. I hope this recipe if you’re reading this now or later on in the future when this craziness of March 2020 passes, brings you some joy and gets your family involved in the process. :)

I do almost exactly what bon appetit’s recipe says but I leave out the tomatoes, I hardly ever have fresh tomatoes lying around especially in the winter.

Recipe adapted from Molly Baz Bonappetit.com by Tierney Larson

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

4 large eggs

For the shallots:

the juice of 1 lemon

1 shallot thinly sliced

a pinch of sugar

kosher salt

For the mayonaise spread:

1/2 cup of mayonaise

1 small garlic clove finely grated

1 1/2 tsp sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

For the toast:

4 tbl olive oil

4 slices of sourdough or country loaf bread

the rest:

2 6-7oz cans of tuna packed in olive oil, drained

1/2 cup of torn herbs (I love using mint and basil, but you could use dill, parsley or tarragon)

1/4 cup of oil cured olives, (I use kalamata) pitted and torn

Ok so..

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil with enough water to cover the top of the eggs. Lower the eggs into the boiling water using a slotted spoon and boil for 8 minutes. Remove from the pot and place immediately into a bowl of ice water. Once cooled, peel and set aside.

Place the shallots and lemon juice in a small bowl along with a pinch of salt and sugar and toss. Let sit while you prepare the rest.

Mix together the mayo, garlic, sherry vinegar and paprika and season with kosher salt. Taste and add more salt if necessary.

Place a medium skillet over medium heat and add 2 tbl of olive oil, heat until shimmering. Place 2 slices of bread in the skillet and toast on one side only until deeply golden. Remove from the pan and sprinkle the toasted side with some kosher salt and set aside. Repeat with the remaining olive oil and bread.

To assemble: Place the bread toasted side up on a plate, slather with some of the mayonaise, then top with the rest in this order, tuna, shallots with a little bit of the juice they’re in, sliced hard boiled egg, a sprinkling of flaky salt or kosher salt, some freshly ground black pepper, torn herbs and olives. Top everything with another drizzle of olive oil and enjoy!