Sardine and Pickle Sandwiches

Ingredients

• 4 slices bread (Use a sturdy sandwich loaf — white or brown both work well. Slice evenly to about 1 cm thick if cutting from a whole loaf.)
• 2 tablespoons green or any fancy butter (Green butter is a herb-infused compound butter, often made with parsley or coriander. Any flavoured compound butter — such as anchovy butter or herb butter — may be used. Use softened (room-temperature) butter so it spreads easily without tearing the bread.)
• 1 tin (approximately 120g) chopped sardines (Use tinned sardines in oil or brine, drained well. Chop them roughly with a fork or knife into small pieces — they don't need to be perfectly uniform.)
• 2 tablespoons bits of pickle (Use any pickle you enjoy — a mixed vegetable pickle, mango pickle, or gherkin pickle all work. Cut or chop larger pieces into small bits so they distribute evenly inside the sandwich.)

Instructions

1. 1Open the tin of sardines and drain off any oil or brine. Tip the sardines onto a chopping board and use a fork or knife to chop them into small, rough pieces — don't worry about making them perfectly even. If your pickle pieces are large, chop them into small bits as well so they will spread easily inside the sandwich. Set both aside.
2. 2Lay out all four slices of bread on a clean chopping board or flat surface. Make sure your green or fancy butter is soft and at room temperature — it should spread easily without tearing the bread. Using a butter knife or the back of a spoon, spread the flavoured butter generously and evenly across one side of each bread slice, all the way to the edges.
3. 3Take two of the buttered bread slices and lay them butter-side up. Distribute the chopped sardines evenly over these two slices, covering the surface in a roughly even layer. Scatter small bits of pickle here and there over the sardines — you don't need to be precise, just dot them across the filling so each bite gets a little pickle. Place the remaining two buttered bread slices on top, butter-side down, pressing gently to hold the sandwich together. Cut each sandwich in half diagonally or straight across, and serve immediately.