April 16, 2007
Canapés Radis Avocat au Sel Fumé
[Avocado and Radish Canapés with Smoked Salt]
I've been on an avocado kick lately, and I blame my favorite produce stall for that: they keep running specials on them and really, who can resist a special on a trio of avocados when the stall keeper will hand-pick them for you so each will be ripe a couple of days after the previous one? (And since we're on the subject of produce stall wonders, I've just discovered after four years of schlepping basketfulls of stuff from this one that they. will. deliver.)
So I've been on an avocado kick, and because the season of pink radishes is in full swing, I've been hung up on them, too. The classic way to enjoy pink radishes is to eat them with bread, butter, and salt, so I had this idea for a canapé: substitute avocado for the butter -- what is avocado if not green butter? -- and smoked salt for the ordinary salt.
Smoked salt, you ask? Yes, after trying Bordier's smoked salt butter, I decided that I, too, had a right to play with smoked salt, and I bought a little tub of it from spice emporium Goumanyat*. This is potent stuff, the sort that should bear a little tag that warns, "Easy there, pal," lest you get a nosebleed from breathing it in too sharply like my sister did when we were seven and eight and we tried to make ourselves sneeze with black pepper like Ma Dalton does in Lucky Luke.
But if you use it in a gingerly fashion, it lends an unusual note to whatever you sprinkle it on, a note I would situate somewhere between sapwood, burnt leaves, and moist earth, and this robust flavor profile engaged the sweetness of the avocado and the fruity piquant of the radish beautifully.
(If smoked salt isn't readily available, a good old sea salt will do fine, with an optional pinch of smoked paprika. As for the toothpicked bites to the right, they're sections from the dry sausages that hang next to the register at my butcher's, rod-shaped and positively addictive.)
* Goumanyat's is in fact a sel aromatisé, a salt that's flavored with natural smoke aroma, rather than actually smoked, so now I want to experiment with Halen Môn smoked sea salt. Stay tuned.
Canapés Radis Avocat au Sel Fumé
1 small ripe avocado (or half of a large one)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Freshly ground pepper
20 slices from a ficelle (a slim baguette) or a baguette
Smoked salt (substitute fleur de sel, kosher salt, or salt + smoked paprika)
10 pink radishes, trimmed and halved
Yields 20 two-bite canapés
Combine the avocado and lemon juice in a small bowl, sprinkle with pepper, and mash roughly with a fork. Spoon onto the bread, season with a pinch of smoked salt, and top with half a radish. Serve immediately.
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~ Grated Carrot Salad with Avocado
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Comments (35)
Permalink | Posted by clotilde in Appetizers - Recipe Inside!
clotilde we are living in the same neighborhood, can you tell me where you go for fresh fruits and vegetables? On Abbesses? it is so expensive...
Posted by camille on April 16, 2007 10:50 AMThat's the kind of fingerfood I love! Simple, but very effective...
Posted by Rosa on April 16, 2007 10:59 AMHum ça a l'air délicieux, je n'ai pas de sel fumé, mais je vais tester!
Posted by auré on April 16, 2007 11:13 AMhmmm, j n'en ferai qu'une bouchée!
Posted by leonine19 on April 16, 2007 11:27 AMIl y a aussi du sel fumé d'Anglesey chez Bruno (hum, quand il est ouvert...), qui devrait te plaire !
Posted by Ester on April 16, 2007 11:52 AMEtant une adepte des radis et du guacamole, j'adopte!
Posted by mamina on April 16, 2007 12:35 PMLovely little appetizer (and as always, lovely photos). Such a nice contrast of flavors.
Posted by Lydia on April 16, 2007 1:22 PMfor those of us in the us, i saw the Halen Môn sea salt online at markethallfoods.com.
Posted by frederick on April 16, 2007 5:06 PMI too am a smoked sea salt junkie. I shamelessly sprinkle the smoky flecks on just about everything that comes my way. I can't wait to pair it with avocados (one of the few items that has escaped my obsession). I recently picked up a bottle of avocado oil and inspired by your recipe, I do believe it will be making a smoked sea salt acquaintance soon!
Posted by eddybles on April 16, 2007 6:18 PMThis looks great, I wonder if I can sub tortilla chips for the baguette, I wil let you know.
Posted by topgrubs on April 16, 2007 8:44 PMah. perfection. what a colorful photograph. beautiful presentation - as always. thanks for sharing this!
Smoked salt -- very interesting. thanks for the introduction.
Posted by Linda on April 16, 2007 11:08 PMSmoked salt, hmmn, that sounds very intriguing! Now i have to go hunt for it. Hopefully, it won't be too hard to find. the recipe certainly looks scrumptious! :)
Posted by Meena on April 17, 2007 12:40 AMCan't get enough of that Halen Mon salt. I bought a box of the smoked that you refer to in Wales and have been carting it around for the past 8 months from the UK to Italy to the US to Canada. It's like a little canister of crispy, fishy, ocean-steeped joy in my suitcase. (Mmm, rotten image, sorry.) They also make a vanilla salt that's like crack. Sprinkle it on spice cookies just as they're browning or dab it onto chocolate-covered caramels prior to eating. Or just straight from the coke spoon, of course.
Posted by the Dichot on April 17, 2007 1:57 AMAvocado is "green butter", yes, but with vitamin E, vitamin C, iron, fiber, potassium and more--enjoy this butter!
Posted by gingerpale on April 17, 2007 3:34 AMFran's Chocolates (a Seattle chocolate and candy maker) makes a caramel with smoked salt - its fabulous.
Posted by jackie on April 17, 2007 3:46 AMCamille - I go to the Jardin des Abbesses, on rue des Abbesses between rue Burq and Tholozé. It's not exactly cheap, but it's reasonable if you stick to seasonal produce, and their stuff is good quality.
Ester - Halen Môn is from Anglesey, too, I wonder if it's that's the one Bruno buys and re-packages?
The Dichot - The vanilla salt sounds good, I'll give it a try, too!
Jackie - Thanks for the tip, I'll try to hit Fran's when I'm in Seattle in May.
Posted by clotilde on April 17, 2007 8:54 AMOh my! How perfect! I have an avocado, some radishes, and smoked salt (alderwood smoked sea salt...smells like a smoke house...fantastic!) just waiting to be used! :) I cannot believe the total serindipity of this entry...thank you!!!
Posted by joey on April 17, 2007 4:01 PMYou know, I normally can't stand avocado (I know, I know) but I think just this tiny little bit would be the perfect counterpart to the crunchy-tangy radish. I'll test it on my boyfriend. And I'll use that Hawaiian pink salt someone gave me as a Christmas gift.
Posted by Mercedes on April 17, 2007 6:00 PMLovely post, as usual Clotilde. Now I know what to do with the radishes in my vegetable bin. Because you've been such an inspiration to me, I've bestowed on you a thinking blogger award. You may want to see my post about it. You can decide for yourself whether or not you want to pass it on. The award is definitely deserved.
Posted by Mary on April 17, 2007 9:48 PMThose radishes look yummy. I broke a whole thing of truffle salt the other day - I will have bad luck, maybe, unless I go buy some smoked salt.
Posted by Michelle on April 17, 2007 10:05 PMClotilde, your canapes were delicious. I love the way you often add an interesting twist to a classic in your recipes, like substituting avocado for butter. I'm pretty much a sucker for anything and everything with avocado in it. And the smoked salt was the perfect touch. For your readers in San Francisco, Rainbow Grocery sells alderwood smoked Pacific sea salt in the bulk food section. Inspired by Clotilde's canapes, I bought an ounce or so the other day to play around with (a little goes a long way). It comes from a company called Salish located in the Puget Sound area near Seattle. Also available on line (www.saltworks.us).
Posted by Brett on April 18, 2007 11:17 AMHi Clotilde,
Posted by Kate on April 18, 2007 3:45 PMIt's great to see you mentioning Halen Mon. I'm from Wales and have been using their sea salt for years. Until recently I hadn't realized how worldwide their reach is, I was surprised to see a pot of their salt sitting on a shelf in a little shop in Sweden a couple of years back :-)
I only came across the smoked salt over Easter at my Aunts house, so I will have to get myself some to try, and the Vanilla salt that Dichot mentions sounds interesting too.
That's so funny. You've been on an avocado kick, we've been on a radish kick. Yesterday, the husband asked if there was something new we could do with radishes. Today, I will say "yes." Thanks, Clotilde.
Cheers!
Posted by almost vegetarian on April 18, 2007 7:45 PMClotilde,
in Japanese, avocadoes are called "butter of the forests"!
also, Fran's salt chocolates are out of this world. www.franschocolates.com/catalog/product.asp?cid=11
love your blog,
Posted by suzy on April 18, 2007 8:11 PMformer Seattlelite and now-Tokyo resident
Yummy - I've never purchased smoked salt, but I think I'll have to go find some.....
Love this refreshing combination and can't wait to try it out!
Posted by mrbunsrocks on April 18, 2007 8:34 PMSounds too good to be true. Tomorrow morning, I'm off to the market to find pink radishes. I'm not as confident about where to search for the smoked salt in Antibes...any ideas?
Meilleurs voeux!!
Posted by blueVicar on April 19, 2007 6:43 PMhello Clotilde,
Posted by dounoaille on April 20, 2007 8:20 AMQuelle bonne idée ! Connaissez-vous le sel appelé "Masala" le sel de l'Himalaya de la marque "Lumière de Sel" dans une boite orange jaune que je trouve à la Biocoop du Bd de Grenelle. C'est parfait pour les assaisonnements.
J'ai découvert aussi que mettre du pineau blanc à la place du vin pour une petite dorade au four est tellement meilleur.
Essayez aussi une soupe incroyable thaï à la citronnelle crevettes à laquelle je suis addict ! chez Tricotin avenue de Choisy 13e à Paris. Le gout est si subtil !
Voilà beaucoup d'infos en même temps et encore merci pour vos précieuses recettes. Dou
Lovely combination of flavors in a lovely appetizer. We have "rainbow" radishes here in Southern California which come in beautiful pinks, whites, and purples.
Posted by Susan from Food "Blogga" on April 20, 2007 9:04 PMClotilde, have you tried cold-smoking the avocado itself? If not, you're in for a treat. As chance would have it, I did this a couple of months ago and logged it here, at my blog.
John
Posted by John J. Goddard on April 21, 2007 3:32 PMClotilde, hearty congratulations on the extremely positive early review (free registration required) of your cookbook in the Sunday NYTimes!!!
Posted by Brett on April 22, 2007 2:18 AMThis looks so easy and delicious! I wish we could find good avocados so easily where I am living now. I miss them from Paris, and even more from Tahiti.
Posted by Blame It on Paris on April 22, 2007 4:26 PMFelicitations on your great NY Times review today! May it result in lots of book sales.
Posted by Taina on April 23, 2007 8:08 AMI'm a sucker for anything involving avocado, especially perfectly ripe ones! I write about them all the time. I love how colorfully springy this appetizer is and how easy it sounds!
Posted by Max on April 24, 2007 7:46 PMI made these for a little cocktail party and used the black lava salt I had on hand instead of smoked. It worked out so well and everyone was very impressed!
Posted by Sarah on May 15, 2007 3:00 AMHope you tried the Fran's smoked salt caramels when you were in Seattle I think the're the best thing to come from Seattle. If you're ever here again I recommend the Harvest Vine restaurant
Posted by angela on May 31, 2007 3:33 AMPrivacy. The email addresses you enter will not be used for any other purpose than the sending of this message.