We know. You want to impress your guests. But you can’t afford to spend half your work week fussing in the kitchen before your holiday party. Which is exactly why this easy, uncomplicated, elegant hors d’oeuvre is gonna be a godsend throughout the entertaining season…and beyond.–Angie Zoobkoff
Smoked Trout Crostini
Ingredients
- 1 small baguette, cut diagonally into 1/3-inch-thick (8-mm-thick) slices
- About 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/8 teaspoon salt, plus more for the baguette slices
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for the baguette slices
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- About 6 fresh chives, thinly sliced crosswise, plus more for sprinkling
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice, plus more to taste
- 4 ounces smoked trout
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Arrange the baguette slices on a rimmed baking sheet. Lightly brush the tops of the slices with some of the oil and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper to taste. Turn the slices over, brush with the remaining oil, and season again. Toast in the oven, turning once, until the edges are golden brown and slightly crisp, 5 to 7 minutes per side. Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack to cool.
- In a small bowl, stir together the sour cream, chives, lemon juice, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.
- Using your hands, break or tear the smoked trout into small pieces and divide it among the toasts. Top each with a dollop of the sour cream mixture and, if desired, sprinkle with more chives. Arrange on a platter and serve immediately.
Notes
SWITCH UP YOUR HERBS
If you have no chives on hand, go ahead and save yourself a trip to the store or the extra expense and substitute whatever you do happen to have on hand, whether dill or thyme or whatever else may be languishing in your fridge.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
These smoked trout crostini would make an elegant but simple hors d’oeuvre for a dinner party. The trout and sour cream toppings could be prepared in advance and kept refrigerated separately or prepped and mixed while the bread is toasting in the oven. Place the cooled crostini on a platter and add the trout and sour cream topping to the bread when ready to serve.
The chives I used were very thin. Next time I would use more and also sprinkle additional chives on top of the sour cream. Chives on the top would make the presentation of these even more attractive.
What a fast and impressive snack or appetizer these smoked trout crostini are! With bought crostini and smoked fish in the refrigerator, this dish could be assembled immediately. We served it as an appetizer with Sonoma-Cutrer 2010 Chardonnay. Delicious little bites.
I did use more than 4 ounces of smoked trout—I used 6 ounces. I added 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice. We liked more tang to the sour cream. The recipe made 12 but we loaded each up with the sour cream and smoked trout—a little messy but so good.
I’ll keep this recipe close for a pretty and delicious appetizer in a hurry!
These smoked trout crostini were a quick and easy snack that I whipped up when I had a couple of the neighbors in for a drink. I used smoked salmon and followed the recipe. Everyone seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. Definitely a lighter option.
On weekends, I am all over easy recipes like this! The simplicity of this smoked trout crostini also lends itself to versatility.
I could not find cold smoked trout in any of the local stores. I did find hot smoked trout and two kinds of cold smoked salmon and some smoked turkey thigh. In fact, paper-thin slices of anything would turn out great! The smoked trout and chive sour cream worked very well together, but other herbs would allow you to easily change up the dish.
I would start with 1/4 teaspoon of lemon juice but more may be needed to brighten the flavors.
Finally, the heavier your sour cream, the more luxurious this easy preparation will become. [Editor’s Note: Definitely splurge on full-fat sour cream!]
This is a very easy, quick appetizer dish, elegant and uncomplicated, and very good to prep in advance. I tried it with a couple kinds of fish—smoked trout and salmon. Both were good although my personal preference was the trout.
I used a little bit of water to thin out the sour cream a bit more to be able to drizzle it over the crostini. I also used some longer snippets of chives for decoration on top of the sour cream drizzle.
