Caviar Canape

An assembly job rather than a cooked dish, so the only real work is in the components and the timing. Everything can be prepared ahead except the final dressing.

• Dress at the last momentThe instruction to dress "when ready to serve" is the hinge. Vinaigrette on toast turns it soggy within a few minutes, and it also thins and dulls the caviar.
• Caviar to buyCaviar on a canapé of this sort could mean sturgeon roe, pressed or lightly salted, or the cheaper dyed lumpfish roe sold in small jars. Any firm-grained roe works — salmon, trout, or paddlefish; avoid anything heavily dyed, as the colour can bleed into the egg and cucumber.
• Never let caviar meet heatToast the bread and let it cool completely before assembling. Warm bread makes the eggs sweat and the roe go flat and oily.
• Egg ringsHard-cooked eggs sliced crosswise give you two or three usable centre rings each; the yolk can be pushed out to leave a ring, or left in place as a base for the caviar. An egg slicer gives cleaner rounds than a knife.
• French salad dressingIn American books of this period this means a simple oil-and-vinegar vinaigrette, roughly three parts oil to one part vinegar with salt and pepper — not the sweetened orange bottled dressing sold under that name today.
• CucumberSlice paper-thin and salt the slices briefly, then blot dry, or the water they give up will run into the toast. "Freshly peeled" is the point: cut them just before assembling.
• Rounds and yieldA 1½ to 2 inch cutter gives a canapé that fits the egg slice and can be eaten in one or two bites. Allow three or four per person with drinks.
• SaltCaviar and dressing both bring salt. Season the eggs and cucumber lightly or not at all.