Smoked Salmon Crostinis – Festive Food

Smoked Salmon Crostinis –  Perfect for festive pre dinner drinks

Smoked salmon crostinis are perfect along with festive pre dinner drinks and make great starters.   There’s a great choice available including hot smoked and a range of flavours including gin and whisky cured, all of which will add a special touch to Christmas canapes. Impress your guests with this selection of smoked salmon topped crostinis.

 Smoked Salmon  crostinis

Crostini are so easy to make and can be prepared in advance. They’ll also keep well in an airtight container for a few days, and will work well with a wide range of toppings. The crostini are made with small baguettes but I also find it handy to keep a few packs of ready to bake baguettes in the store cupboard over the festive period.

Crostini recipe. Pre Heat oven to 200C/180fan/Gas 6.   3 baguettes -(30cm baguettes make approximately 24 crostini). Rapeseed oil.

Slice the baguettes into thin slices about 4-5 cm. Brush both sides with rapeseed oil. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 10 mins or until golden and crispy. Cool on a wire rack and store in an airtight container until ready to use.

Toppings

A few simple toppings is all you need to make these tasty crostini and they are perfect for salmon canapes.  Make ahead to assemble when needed. Two 250g packs of smoked salmon will be sufficient to make the potted salmon and for placing on top of the crostini. Any leftovers can be used to make other canapes.  Smoked salmon trimmings which are usually more economical can also be used for the potted salmon.

Smoked salmon crostinis with beetroot and dill pate

250g beetroot cooked and peeled. Small bunch of dill. 3-4 tbsp creme fraiche. Small bunch of dill. Salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Place the beetroot, dill (reserve some sprigs for garnishing) and 3 tbsp of the creme fraiche in a food processor and blend until well combined but still with a thick consistency. Check the consistency and if needed add the remaining tbsp of creme fraiche. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add a dollop of the beetroot pate to each crostini, top with a curl of smoked salmon and garnish with dill.

Potted smoked salmon crostinis with lemon and parsley

25g melted butter. 250g smoked salmon. 1 tbsp creme fraiche. Zest and juice of half a lemon – keep the zest for garnishing. Small handful of chopped parsley. Dried seaweed flakes. Salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Place all the ingredients in a food processor and process on pulse mode until blended but still retaining some of the salmon texture.  Spread the crostini with the salmon mixture and top with a curl of smoked salmon. Garnish with the lemon zest and a sprinkle of seaweed flakes if using.

Smoked salmon crostinis with sun-dried tomato pesto

2 tbsp pine nuts. 100g sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained. 1 large garlic clove. Small bunch of basil – keep some of the smaller leaves for garnishing. 2 tbsp pecorino cheese, grated.  3 – 4 tbsp olive oil. Salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Heat a small  frying pan over a medium heat, add the pine nuts and toast until golden. Place the pine nuts, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, basil, pecorino and 3 tbsp of olive oil to a food processor and whizz until combined but still with a good texture. If too thick add the remaining olive oil. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Spread a small amount of pesto on each crostini, top with a curl smoked salmon and garnish with the remaining basil leaves.

 

Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation provided the salmon and a range of ingredients for these recipes. Further information on Scottish Salmon can be found on the the website