Toast with Herbed Skyr and Quick Pickles

I've made some pretty involved recipes on here, like my triple flavored Neapolitan Madeleines or my sky high 6 layer Mint Chocolate Cake. It's exciting to push the boundaries and take things to the next level in the kitchen but sometimes the simplest things are just what the doctor ordered. This Toast with Herbed Skyr and Quick Pickles is as simple as it gets but becomes a colorful spread of snacky delights when prepared for a simple gathering of food, folks and fun.

A while back my photography buddy, Silas, brought over a few loaves of hearty and simple handmade, nutrient rich, power bread by a new local bakery, Oat Bakery. They are new on the scene here and run by the sweetest mother/daughter duo from two locations, Santa Barbara, CA and Copenhagen, Denmark. The lovely daughter, Louise, runs the SB location and is making quite a name for Oat Bakery, cruising around town in their darling chalkboard painted bread truck and popping up at all of the hot SB spots.  In creating a new recipe on Oat Bakery bread, I knew I wanted to keep the recipe minimal and allow the hearty superfood loaves take center stage.

This recipe for Toast with Herbed Skyr and Quick Pickles uses simple ingredients and takes minimal effort to prepare but offers so much in flavor, texture and presentation. You can jump through all kinds of hoops to make pickles by boiling them in brine, then canning, heat-sealing and all of that jazz. But if you only want a quick little batch of crisp and zesty pickles to last you less than a week, these quick little fridgy pickies will get er done. They couldn't be simpler to prepare, just sliced the veggies up thin, toss them into sterilized half pint mason jars, add some fresh dill and cover them with a mix of half distilled white vinegar and half water to soak overnight in the fridge. If you want to spice things up a bit, add black peppercorns, garlic cloves or sliced red cherry chiles peppers. No heat sealing necessary and no limp and floppy pickles. Just quick, crisp and zesty pickles that last up to a week in the fridge!

If you aren't familiar with Skyr, it's basically an Icelandic yogurt that's super mellow on flavor and can go either sweet or savory without missing a beat. I chose to add freshly chopped herbs and lemon zest to brighten things up and ground the flavors. When slathered on a toasty slice of hearty fresh baked bread and topped with zippy quick pickled veggies it's an undeniable and guiltless snack. 

I highly suggest making a spread of this Toast with Herbed Skyr and Quick Pickles for your next gathering and if you can get your hands on a few loaves of Oat Bakery bread, it'll be extra special! Otherwise, a loaf of sourdough levain or even a crusty French baguette from your favorite local bakery will also make a tasty batch of Toast with Herbed Skyr and Quick Pickles.  

If you're in a pickle about what to make for an appetizer or a snack, this Toast with Herbed Skyr and Quick Pickles will solve things quick!

Recipe

Toast with Herbed Skyr and Quick Pickles

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• Total Time: 25 minutes
• Yield: 16 serving

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Description

Toasty slabs of hearty grilled bread topped with a slather of herby skyr & a colorful spread of crisp and zesty quick pickled veggies and fresh herbs.

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Ingredients

Units USM

QUICK PICKLES

• 3 half pint mason jars
• ¾ cups distilled white vinegar
• ¾ cups filtered water
• 2 whole carrots (2-3 small) (peeled)
• 2 whole Persian cucumber
• 6 whole radishes
• 1 ½ teaspoon whole black peppercorns
• 4 whole garlic cloves
• 1 whole red cherry chile pepper
• 6 sprigs dill

HERB SKYR

• 16 slices high quality bread
• 2 cups Skyr or Greek Yogurt
• 2 tablespoons parsley (finely chopped)
• 2 tablespoons fresh chives (finely chopped)
• 1 tablespoon fresh dill (finely chopped)
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest (finely zested)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper (freshly ground)

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Instructions

QUICK PICKLES

1. Thinly slice carrots, cucumber and radish. Fill sterilized ½ pint mason jars with carrots, cucumbers and radish in individual jars. 
2. Add fresh dill sprigs, ½ teaspoon of peppercorn and optional garlic or thinly sliced red cherry chile peppers to jars. 
3. In a large liquid measuring cup, combine filtered water and distilled white vinegar together. Then,  pour mixture over top of each jar until all of the veggies are completely submerged.
4. Screw on the mason jar lids and place the quick pickles in the fridge for at least a few hours, preferably overnight, before serving.

HERB SKYR

1. Stir lemon zest, finely chopped herbs and salt and pepper into the skyr. Set aside.

TOASTY BREAD

1. Slice the bread into 16 slabs, about ¾" - 1" thick.
2. Warm a grill pan or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat and grill the bread slices until it toasts up and just starts to char on the edges. Set aside.
3. Top the grilled bread slices with a thick slather (1-2 tablespoons) of herby skyr mixture.
4. Top with an rainbow of quick pickled veggies, snippets of fresh herbs and a grind of salt and pepper. 

Notes

*These are quick and zippy pickles that stay crisp in the fridge, no heat and no fuss necessary. When sealed tight, they should last up to a week in the fridge.

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 10 minutes