smoked salmon canapes

I know, I know, it's been a long time since I've updated. I've been having difficulties finding a balance between work and school to have some time for myself, and my cooking. Yes, I'm finally employed once again, and to add to that full time schedule, I've taken up the idea of a night class after almost three years since finishing college. Once I get home, turning on the computer is the last thing I want to do. But here I am, on a sunny Sunday morning, tapping away at the keyboard. 

These canapes were part of one of my favorite photo spreads in the book. Simple, classic, and clean. Smoked salmon always conjured up ideas of a fancy tea party or hors d'oeuvres platter. Smoky and salty, the seemingly raw slices would just melt in your mouth. And when I visited New York a couple of years ago, I fell in love with a smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel around the corner from my friend's dorm. There are still days when I think about that round little breakfast sandwich, with a cup of coffee of course. What could be more perfect?

These, however, were a much more aesthetically pleasing take on the classic, grown up and dressed up. I practically doubled the amount of salmon in the cucumber triangles above, wanting a greater salmon to cream cheese ratio. I'm not a big fan of cream cheese, generally spreading it thin, just enough to add some creaminess and moisture. That's one of the best thing with food, you can always adjust to your palette. 

  

I liked the salmon flower more, with its assertive herbaceous and lemony flavor. Plus, it was just so much cuter, dainty and perfect for a tea party. The salmon and cucumber was definitely cleaner tasting though, with the cucumber adding a nice fresh crisp bite. Perhaps, a combination of the two would be the best combination of flavor and texture. 

Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese and Cucumber Canapes


makes two dozen

1 cup roughly chopped smoked salmon
1/2 cup cream cheese, at room temperature
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp prepared horseradish
12 slices of wheat bread
2 large seedless cucumbers, peel on

In a small bowl, use a fork to combine the salmon, cream cheese, lemon juice, and horseradish. Set aside, covered in plastic wrap, in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Toast bread slices until dry and toasted slightly. Cool.

Generously spread each bread slice with the salmon cream cheese. Using a mandoline, thinly slice the cucumbers lengthwise about 1/8-inch thick. Arrange the cucumber slices, overlapping slightly, on each bread slice. Trim the crusts. Slice each canape in half on the diagonal with a sharp knife. Finish remaining ingredients. Serve slightly chilled.

Smoked Salmon Flower Canapes


makes 2 dozen

12 slices of wheat bread
3 oz dill butter, at room temperature (recipe below)
6 oz thinly sliced smoked salmon
24 small sprigs fresh dill

Toast bread slices until dry and toasted slightly. Cool.

Spread each bread slice with the butter. Arrange a single layer of smoked salmon over each slice. Use a 2-inch flower-shaped cookie cutter to cut out 24 canapes. Garnish each with a sprig of dill and serve.


Dill Butter:

4 tsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp chopped fresh dill
1/4 tsp kosher salt

Place butter, cream cheese, lemon zest and juice, dill, and salt in bowl. Smash with back of fork until well combined. Refrigerate until ready to use.

bacon potato pizza

It's been way too long, and I can't believe I've put this post on hold, collecting micro-dust in my laptop's hard drive. There's definitely a certain fondness for the salty goodness in a crispy bacon bite in everyone's heart, at least everyone I know. So how can a thin crusty pizza topped with bacon go wrong? Add potato and cheese to the mix and you have a match made in finger food heaven.

My cracker-like pie began when I found smoked mozzarella and a bag of medley potatoes at Trader Joe's. I saved the red ones and used the remaining to make roasted garlic potatoes. Luckily, I had some bacon in the freezer, a purchase induced by the half off sale at my local market. The traditional pizza dough was replaced by a St. Louis style cracker thin crust, which I saw on an episode of America's Test Kitchen. I love paper thin crust, so I couldn't resist changing it up.

A mandoline was completely the key to getting the small potatoes translucently thin. The shingling of the slices reminded me of scales and another dish I made years ago where halibut is wrapped in potato scales and pan fried. That was a delicious fish dish, something I saw on an episode of Top Chef and used the recipe from Anne Burrell. It was so aromatic and perfect, I was stunned at the delicate dish. But back to pizza...I didn't have any rosemary, as my plant decided to give out despite hearing how other people's rosemary plants growing into bushes. Perhaps my final product lacked the herbal aroma of the original recipe, but lacking in its complexity, it exuded simple and hearty bar food bites.

The potato cooked just enough to soften, but remained texturally pronounced, and the bacon provided the appropriate saltiness as usual. The smoked mozzarella was definitely something I would probably enjoy more than Parmesan as in the original recipe. The smokiness played off well with the bacon. These little squares were quite tasty with a bottle of ice cold beer.

Potato Bacon Pizza adapted from Martha Stewart and America's Test Kitchen


makes two 14 x 4-inch pizzas

4 oz sliced bacon
1 recipe St. Louis style pizza dough
AP flour, for dusting
4 oz small red potatoes, skin on
olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 oz smoked mozzarella

Dough:
2 cups AP flour
2 tbsp cornstarch
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp water
2 tbsp olive oil

To make dough: Combine flour, cornstarch, sugar, baking powder, and salt in large bowl. Combine water and olive oil and stir into dry ingredients, until dough comes together. Turn dough onto floured surface and knead 3-4 times until cohesive. Divide dough into two equal portions and roll out each dough portion on a parchment lined into about 14 x 4-inch pizzas. Transfer to baking sheets.

Preheat oven to 475 degrees and adjust rack to lower-middle position. Slice the bacon crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces. Place the bacon in a large skillet and cook over medium-low heat until most of the fat is rendered and the bacon is just beginning to brown, 4-6 minutes. Drain on paper towel and set aside.

Using a mandoline, cut the potatoes into 1/16-inch-thick slices. Arrange the slices, overlapping slightly, on the pizza. Brush with oil and season lightly with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with half of the bacon and mozzarella. Bake about 9 minutes, until crust is golden, rotating pizza halfway through baking. Slice into squares and serve warm with your beer of choice.