Open Faced Sandwiches with Garlic Aioli

Open faced sandwiches with homemade garlic aioli are both simple and elegant. Topped with smoked salmon or prosciutto, they are perfect for a casual party, lunch or light supper.

Open faced sandwiches with homemade garlic aioli are both simple and elegant. Topped with smoked salmon or prosciutto, they are perfect for a casual party, lunch or light supper.

It’s springβ€”the season of brunches and family gatherings! To celebrate we are having Open Faced Sandwiches made with Homemade Garlic Aioli. It is a dish that is both simple and elegant–perfect for sitting around the table to catch up with family and friends! 

What is Garlic Aioli?

Now key to the standout flavor of these truly simple sandwiches is a great garlic aioli. For those not familiar with garlic aioli, it is basically a fancy, olive-oil based, homemade mayonnaise.

Per Wilpedia, aioli is β€œa sauce made of garlic, salt, olive oil, and often egg, and found in the cuisines of the northwest Mediterranean… Like mayonnaise, aioli is an emulsion or suspension of small globules of oil and oil-soluble compounds in water and water-soluble compounds.”

The added flavors take the taste experience to a whole new level, not that salmon or prosciutto have any trouble carrying a sandwich! Open faced sandwiches with homemade garlic aioli are both simple and elegant. Topped with smoked salmon or prosciutto, they are perfect for a casual party, lunch or light supper.

Why You’ll Love This!

Tasty. Between the salmon, prosciutto and garlic aioli, there is a super abundance of flavor in these sandwiches.

Quick & easy to assemble. The aioli whips up in a couple minutes using an immersion blender and the rest of the sandwich assembles quickly using a few simple ingredients.  And for occasions where you’re not sure of the number of guests, it’s easy to pull together more sandwiches in minutes!

Impressive. Despite their simplicity, these sandwiches have an understated elegance that is worthy of any occasion!  Open faced sandwiches with homemade garlic aioli are both simple and elegant. Topped with smoked salmon or prosciutto, they are perfect for a casual party, lunch or light supper.

What You’ll Need

Ingredients:

Sandwich:

  • Crusty bread.  This forms the base of your sandwiches. French, Italian or sourdough bread should all work.
  • Smoked Salmon, prosciutto.  This is the “meat” of the sandwich.
  • Garnishes of your choice like asparagus, dill, capers, thin pepper slices, lemon curls.
  • Garlic Aioli (see below). This adds flavor and distinction.

Garlic Aioli

  • Egg.  This helps emulsify the aioli
  • Lemon juice. This adds flavor and promotes emulsification.
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil. The oils form the main base of the aioli and add flavor.
  • A Milder Oil (such as avocado, canola or mild olive oil).
  • Salt, pepper, garlic, parsley add flavor

chopping parsley

Special Tools:

  • An immersion blender is recommended to achieve the most reliable emulsion (blending together) of the aioli.  Conventional blender instructions are also included.
  • A blending jar that will just fit the head of the immersion blender.  A wide-mouth one pint canning jar is ideal. This is important for the physics of emulsification.

Sandwich assembly area

Step by Step Directions

Combine aoili ingredients in wide-mouth one pint canning jar or another jar that is just wide enough to fit the immersion blender head.  Blend. Blend aioli ingrredients

Slice the bread, then toast on one or both sides.  Spread with a generous layer of aioli. spread toasted bread with aioli

Top each slice with salmon or prosciutto. 

top with meat

Garnish as desired.

sandwiches garnished

Tips & FAQs

The oil you chose is going to have a big impact on the flavor of your aioli.  I like to use part extra version olive oil for the great olive oil flavor.  But I found when I used all EVOO, the flavor was just too intense.  I started out using some milder olive oil or canola oil which was an improvement. 

Today I use avocado oil as my second oil.  It add some unique flavor components of its own without overpowering the EVOO. 

You’ll want a nice bread for this.  It should be something that will get nicely crisp toasted and have some,  but not too much character of it’s own.  I usually go with a French bread, sliced on the diagonal (for bigger slices) when I want smaller sandwiches.  Otherwise, I’ll use a crusty sourdough.  sliced bread and aioli

Great Garlic Recipes

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Open faced sandwiches with homemade garlic aioli are both simple and elegant. Topped with smoked salmon or prosciutto, they are perfect for a casual party, lunch or light supper.

Open Faced Sandwiches with Garlic Aioli

Open faced sandwiches with homemade garlic aioli are both simple and elegant. Topped with smoked salmon or prosciutto, they are perfect for a casual party, lunch or light supper.
Author: Inger
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 15 mins
Total Time 15 mins
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6
Calories 410 kcal

Ingredients
  

Sandwiches

  • 12 ounce loaf french bread about 18 inches
  • 3 ounces smoked salmon
  • 4 ounces ham or prosciutto ideally prosciutto
  • Garnishes such as steamed asparagus dill sprigs, lemons curls, capers

Garlic Aioli

  • 1 garlic clove chopped
  • 1 large egg (pasteurized per the FDA)
  • 1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley or 1 t chopped fresh chives
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • dash freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 cup avocado oil or another lighter oil like canola

Instructions
 

  • To prepare aioli, combine ingredients in a jar that is just wide enough to fit an immersion blender (a wide-mouthed pint canning jar works well). Blend, starting at the bottom of the jar, then moving up as mixture combines and changes color. Continue to process until the mixture has formed a thick emulsion. Refrigerate.
  • Thinly slice the French bread on a diagonal and toast slices on one or both sides. Spread with garlic aioli, then layer with salmon or prosciutto, then top with your choice of garnishes. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate briefly.
  • Any leftover aioli should be refrigerated and used within a few days.

Notes

To prepare aioli in a conventional blender, combine the garlic, egg, lemon juice, parsley, salt and pepper in a food processor or blender and puree. Add the oil in a slow stream (this is important for it to emulsify properly). Continue to process until the mixture has formed a thick emulsion. Refrigerate.

Nutrition

Calories: 410kcalCarbohydrates: 31gProtein: 16gFat: 25gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 20gCholesterol: 52mgSodium: 1163mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3g
I am not a health professional and nutrition data is calculated programatically. Accuracy may vary with product selection, calculator accuracy, etc. Consult a professional for the best information.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Originally published: Jun 15, 2014

33 thoughts on “Open Faced Sandwiches with Garlic Aioli

  1. John / Kitchen Riffs

    Aioli is SO good! Love the stuff. I’ve made it often with a conventional blender, never with an immersion one. I really need to try that — makes so much sense. Anyway, neat post — thanks.

    1. Inger Post author

      I agree–it’s really a game changer, flavor-wise! Just be sure you use a snug jar when you try the immersion blender version. You’ll love it!

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  4. Beth

    I try to stay away from fries, too, and I think aioli would be terrific on a sandwich. And now I have to google what a ulu is!

    1. Inger Post author

      It’s that rounded knife in the parsley cutting picture. Way easier than trying to rock a chef’s knife! They are traditional Alaskan knives, so you should take a look at their history!

    1. Inger Post author

      That IS an ulu Grace. One of my sister’s friends introduced her to it and she brought them back for all of us from a vacation to Alaska. What did I ever do without it!

  5. Kathy

    Besides the recipe looking marvelous, your photos are really looking wonderful. Have you purchased a new camera in recent months? Really professional-looking.

    1. Inger Post author

      Thank you so much Kathy–I have been rejected from foodgawker so many times this month, I really appreciate the compliment! I got a new camera just over a year ago, but I am trying harder to get better pictures.

  6. Louise

    Oh my, Inger those are GREAT sandwiches for any occasion. I adore open faced sandwiches. I feel like they are a yummy kinda cheating dish calorie wise. I know silly:)

    I’m yet to make Aioli. I think it’s so funny how it has become so popular. I guess I’m just stuck on mayo and probably afraid I will LOVE it as much…

    Thanks for sharing your version, Inger. It sounds way too enticing but absolutely delicious!

    1. Inger Post author

      Ah yes, Louise, as I like to say, so much (good) food, so little time. If you decide to try aioli and have an immersion blender, I just saw a video of someone making it with that. It seemed more foolproof than slow drizzling into the blender, so I may have to try it next time (even though I’ve now done it 3 times successfully using the blender, I still worry…)

  7. Karis

    I love aioli, especially garlic versions but have never attempted it at home. Well not counting my shortcut aioli that I make with mayonnaise πŸ™‚

    1. Inger Post author

      I saw lots for recipes made that way but I thought I’d give this a try. I was scared to death it wouldn’t gel–especially since it doesn’t right away and it feels like more oil will make it worse–but it did in the end!

    1. Inger Post author

      Thanks Kathy. I am debating a July 4th party so I have an excuse to try them with a broader audience!

  8. Choc Chip Uru

    Any father would appreciate such delicious sandwiches, the garlic aioli is inspired πŸ˜€
    I bet it goes wonderfully with the ham!

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

    1. Inger Post author

      My daughter asked if we could have it again tonight so Dad wasn’t the only one who enjoyed it πŸ˜‰

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