Smoked Salmon Bagels with Lemon-Dill Cream Cheese and Quick-Pickled Radishes

Taste

This is the Montréal weekend breakfast — chewy St-Viateur sesame bagels, salty cold-smoked Atlantic salmon, and cream cheese whipped with lemon zest, dill, and chives so it tastes alive rather than flat from the tub. Spring radishes and a French shallot get a fast 15-minute pickle that turns them magenta and sharp, cutting through the richness on every bite. Aside from the vinegar and sugar in the pickle, every component comes from Lufa: bagels from St-Viateur, cold-smoked salmon from Afishionado, Riviera cream cheese, Bertrand greenhouse radishes, French shallots, and dill and chives from Ahuntsic.

Instructions

1. Pickle the radishes. In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the white wine vinegar, sugar, fine sea salt, and 80 ml of cold water until the sugar and salt dissolve. Add the sliced radishes and shallot, pressing them down so they’re submerged. Let sit at room temperature for at least 15 minutes while you make the rest — the radishes will turn the brine bright pink and soften just slightly. ⏱︎ 15 min
2. Whip the cream cheese. Place the softened cream cheese in a bowl with the lemon zest, 2 teaspoons of lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of the chopped dill, the chives, a pinch of salt, and several grinds of black pepper. Whisk vigorously by hand for about 1 minute, or with a hand mixer for 30 seconds, until light, fluffy, and noticeably paler — this aerates the spread so it goes on like a cloud instead of a brick. ⏱︎ 1 min
3. Toast the bagels. Toast the bagel halves cut-side up under the broiler or in a toaster until just golden at the edges, about 3 to 5 minutes. You want a crisp surface but a chewy centre — don’t push them to a deep brown or they’ll fight the toppings. ⏱︎ 5 min
4. Assemble. Spread a generous, swooping layer of cream cheese onto each toasted bagel half. Layer on the cucumber slices, then drape with ribbons of smoked salmon. Drain the pickled radishes and shallot well (shake the colander to get them dry) and pile a small handful on top of each. Finish with the remaining dill, a pinch of flaky sea salt, and a few grinds of black pepper. Serve open-faced, with the second halves on the side for a sandwich-style option.

Tips

• Make ahead: The whipped cream cheese keeps in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days; let it sit out for 15 minutes before serving so it spreads easily again. The pickled radishes are even better the next day and keep for a week submerged in their brine.
• Substitution: Poppy seed, everything, or plain bagels all work — Henri Bourassa makes a wonderful poppy seed version if you want a different bakery. If smoked salmon isn’t on your basket, a soft-boiled six-minute egg, halved, makes an excellent vegetarian topping in its place.
• Variation: Add a thin layer of microgreens or pea shoots under the salmon for an extra spring crunch, or a few drops of good olive oil and lemon juice over the top for a more Scandinavian feel.
• For a crowd: Multiply the cream cheese and pickles freely — both scale easily and turn this into an excellent brunch board. Set out the bagels, salmon, toppings, and let people build their own.