Today, I have no time to have fun and prepare some nice lunch so I have to go with efficiency. I love tartines and never think of making them for lunch. I eat sweet tartines for breakfast but rarely for lunch. What a pity! They are truly delicious and nutritious. Breakfast and lunch are my favorite meals of the day, and I like to treat myself, because dinner is usually very simple and very light.

I am desperately looking for one client of mine a good halal butcher in the city but I cannot find any. Today, on my way back to the city, I stopped in San Bruno check out this Middle Eastern market, if maybe they had some meat. They had none but they did have a lot of of things including sardines on their shelves that looked really good. Basically, they had a lot of things I didn’t need but I had to buy, just because….So here I am buying a load of sardines in oil, curry leaves, mustard oil, and tons of spices that I didn’t need, but I thought I could “maybe” need at some point.

These little tartines or toasts (whatever you prefer) are fairly easy to make, I don’t like to call them toast because that word reminds me of bad cheap white bread you find in supermarkets, so that would not really apply here.  You can use a regular potato or a slice of country bread but I thought the nutritional value of yams would make them more appealing and interesting.

I had some herb paste left I made with some leftover herbs I had in the refrigerator. When I have too many fresh herbs (cilantro, parsley, chives, mint, basil, etc…) that I know will go bad, I make this pesto, or paste, or sauce, or whatever you want to call it. It has multi functions and is delightful, fresh, pungent, and goes well with almost everything (grilled fish, meat, vegetables, on toasts, etc…).

Here the yams is spread with the herb paste, and topped with a bunch of fresh and delicious toppings.

Voila, c’est prêt! Now it’s time to turn off the computer and enjoy lunch. Bon appétit.

Ingredients for 2-3 tartines

For the tartines

• 1 thick yam, peeled and cut in 1 cm slices
• 1 tsp olive oil + 1 tsp extra
• 1/2 cup baby spinach
• 1 can sardines in olive oil, cut lengthwise
• 2 radishes, thinly sliced
• tomato vinegar
• salt and pepper

For the lemon-herb pesto

• 1 cup mixed herbs (cilantro, basil chives, scallions, parsley, etc…)
• 1 garlic clove
• 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeds removed
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• salt and pepper

Preparation

For the lemon-herb pesto, mix all ingredients except lemon zest in a mixer and mix until smooth but still with a texture. Add extra oil if too thick. Add lemon zest at the end and mix well.

Coat yams with olive oil, salt and pepper. Broil on both sides until golden outside and soft inside. Remove from oven.

In a mixing bowl, add olive oil and tomato vinegar to spinach, and a little salt.

Coat each yam with lemon-herb pesto, add spinach, then sardine halves, and top it with radish slices. Drizzle extra olive oil, tomato vinegar, and fresh pepper.

What do you do when you have dandelions in the refrigerator, no time to cook and a huge craving for dandelions? Well, you can make this lovely tartine. I did not feel like having just a plate of sauté dandelions, so tartines are always a great way to combine greens and other vegetables, and top it off with a poached egg.

Ah my beloved dandelions, did you know that the word dandelions came from the French “dent de lion” or “Lion tooth” because of the dented sides of the leaves that look like lion’s teeth? so “dent de lion” became dandelion!

I loved the wild ones, and I used to go pick them up in the field with my parents and eat tons of them when I was still living at home. I think that time of ramasser les pissenlits et les manger (dandelions pick up and eating) is part of my best memories. If I start doing that here, people would think either I am homeless or insane. My neighbor’s garden has tons of dandelions, and I have been staring at them for a while but obviously I don’t see myself going there with a knife and start digging their garden. The farmed dandelions are not as bitter and the leaves are a lot longer, so I prefer from far the wild ones.

I could not find the exact English for word tartine, it is typically French, basically a slice of bread with a bunch of different things on top, or a simple tartine de beurre, which can be a delight if you have great bread and salted butter. Tartine cannot be translated by toast which is mostly made with American style bread (loaves style). So I will leave tartine as being a tartine.

When grilling the tomatoes, do not over-grill them or they’ll get mushy, just one or two minutes each side. The olive vinaigrette adds a final delicious touch to the tartine.

For 3 tartines

• 3 slices of country bread
  
• 1 bunch dandelion
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 3 tomatoes, sliced
• 3 eggs
• lavender salt
• sea salt and pepper

For the vinaigrette

• 2 tbs olive oil
• 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbs kalamata olives, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 tbs parsley, chopped
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Wash dandelions.  Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add dandelions and cook for 5-7 minutes until tender. Remove from stove and drain. Let it cool and squeeze with your hands extra water.

Heat olive oil in a pan, add 1 garlic clove, stir well and add dandelions, adjust with salt and pepper, and sauté to coat dandelions with oil and garlic.

In a grill pan, grill tomatoes. Remove from the grill and sprinkle with lavender salt and pepper.

Poach egg in water.

Grill each side of bread and top with dandelions, then add tomatoes, and egg. Add vinaigrette on top.

After a beautiful and sunny day, we are back to the grisaille, which literally translates to “greyness”, the good thing about this type of weather is that you can stay home and cook. hat would be the positive thing. I have really never experienced the San Francisco summer, and it can be overwhelming if you need the natural light to enhance your spirit. This summer has been quiet in terms of business, but it will pick up in the fall. Usually in summer I am in Europe, visiting my family but this year I will probably go home a little later.

What about a nice tartine of salmon enhanced with lots of various fragrant herbs on a slice of toasted baguette? It will color your day. It surely did color mine.

The first time I made those toasts, I used smoked salmon instead of fresh, on small toasted baguette as an amuse-gueule or amuse bouche as they would say in the US, and everyone loved it. You can use either fresh salmon or smoked, depending on what you feel like. I put it on toasted bread but you can serve it on a plate, and on top of a mâche salad and with a slice of bread on the side. You can play with it. It’s very versatile.

For 4 medium size tartines

• 1 salmon fillet
• 4 slices of Italian country bread, toasted
• 1 tsp capers, chopped
• 1 tsp chives, chopped
• 1 tsp tarragon, chopped
• 1 tsp cilantro chopped
• 1 tsp red bell pepper, finely chopped
• chili flakes
• 1/2 tsp ginger, grated
• 1 tbs red onion, chopped
• 1/2 tsp strong Dijon mustard
• 1/2 lemon juice
• 1 tsp olive oil
• salt and pepper

Preparation

Broil salmon under broiler. When cooked all the way through, remove and shred in medium size pieces and place in a mixing bowl. For the dressing, add olive oil and all other ingredients and mix well. Add on top of salmon, adjust with salt and pepper. Toast a slice of baguette and add salmon on top.