Crostini with Sardines Lemon (Printable)

Crisp bread slices with sardines, lemon zest, and fresh herbs create a vibrant, elegant starter.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Bread

01 - 1 baguette, sliced into 8 thin rounds
02 - 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

→ Topping

03 - 1 tin (3.5 ounces) high-quality sardines in olive oil, drained
04 - Zest of 1 lemon
05 - 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
06 - 1 small garlic clove, peeled
07 - 2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
08 - Freshly ground black pepper to taste
09 - Flaky sea salt to taste

→ Garnish

10 - Additional fresh parsley leaves
11 - Extra lemon wedges for serving

# How To Make It:

01 - Preheat oven to 400°F. Arrange baguette slices on a baking sheet and brush both sides lightly with olive oil.
02 - Toast in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes, flipping halfway through, until golden and crispy.
03 - While bread is still warm, gently rub one side of each slice with the garlic clove. Discard remaining garlic.
04 - Lay drained sardines evenly over the crostini, breaking larger fillets as needed.
05 - Drizzle each crostini with lemon juice, then sprinkle with lemon zest and chopped parsley.
06 - Season with freshly ground black pepper and a pinch of flaky sea salt.
07 - Garnish with additional parsley leaves and serve with lemon wedges.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • Ready in 20 minutes but tastes like you spent the whole afternoon on it.
  • The combination of citrus and fish feels indulgent and sophisticated, but sardines do all the heavy lifting for flavor.
02 -
  • If your crostini sit around, they'll lose their crackle and start absorbing moisture from the topping—make them just before serving, or toast the bread earlier and assemble at the last moment.
  • The warmth of the bread is doing work here; it softens the sardines slightly and brings out the garlic's natural sweetness in a way cold bread never will.
03 -
  • Brush the bread with olive oil on both sides before toasting—it's the difference between crunchy and shattered, between elegant and rough.
  • Keep the sardine oil from the tin and drizzle it over everything at the end instead of just the lemon juice for an extra layer of umami that makes people wonder what your secret is.
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