Elegant Tarragon and Tomato Butter Tea Sandwiches

French Tart's Note:

These delightful and rather unusual tea sandwiches combine the delicate French herb tarragon, with ripe tomatoes, garlic and shallots – a change from the usual basil and tomatoes. The tomatoes are gently poached with all the seasonings until a thick puree or butter is obtained; the tomato butter is then cooled and you are left with a wondrous sandwich filling, bursting with flavour and colour! The butter can be used for all manner of things, including a topping for a pizza or for toasted sandwiches. Use fresh bread, white or wholemeal, and garnish with fresh tarragon leaves. Any excess butter can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week in the fridge. NB: Prep time includes chilling time for the butter.

• Total Time: 1 hrs 30 mins
• Prep Time: 1 hrs
• Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 3-6

Yield: 6.0 Rounds ...

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 shallots , peeled and finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove , peeled and chopped
• 300 g ripe tomatoes , peeled and chopped
• fresh tarragon (1 sprig)
• 85 g very soft butter
• salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 12 slices white bread

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a small pan and fry the shallots and garlic until soft.
2. Add the tomatoes to the shallots with the tarragon. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until reduced to a thick pulp.
3. Press through a sieve and leave to cool. Once cold, beat the purée slowly into the softened butter.
4. Season, and make into sandwiches with the white bread. Cut into fingers or triangles and serve as part of an afternoon tea, or a picnic lunch!

Reviews

[Grace Lynn]

Made a double batch of these for a Holiday Tea Party this weekend and everyone loved them! I'm thinking I can use this as a pasta sauce, less the butter. Love the flavors of the shallots and tarragon, extremely tasty! Thanks for sharing!

[Baby Kato]

Tartlette these are incredible little gems. I enjoyed them so much. They are certainly worth the extra effort. These little sandwiches are so pretty and unique. I made a small batch just for myself, using challah egg bread, what a decadent treat, they turned out to be. So tasty, savory, rich, creamy and smooth. I can't wait to share these with my friends this summer. Thanks for sharing my friend. Made for Summer Herbs - Month Tarragon/09 :)