smoked salmon perfect for sandwich, pizza - or class - recipe: smoked salmon tartare on crisp potato rounds

Last week I had the pleasure of teaching an appetizer cooking class at Household China. The class was named “Shortt Bites” and I had quite a BLAST teaching it!

Several years ago, while a student at George Brown Chef School in Toronto, I assisted chefs who gave cooking classes at Upstairs at Loblaws and Dish Cooking Studio. It was a fabulous way to network, pick up a lot of handy tips and tricks, and of course, eat! It was a perfect job for a starving student like me. Well, allow me to rephrase that – perfect for a broke student who was determined to still eat well!

As an assistant in Toronto, I had to shop for the grocery items, prep the food, assist the chef during the class and don’t forget take care of all of those dishes! So what a pleasant surprise last Thursday evening when I arrived at Household China to find the grocery items purchased, the food prepped (perfect mise en place, Thanks Donna-Marie!), two accomplished assistants and one friendly dishwasher ready to help me all evening!

The class went off without a hitch – we worked our way through five recipes: warm cheese olive bites (recipe can be found on my website: www.danashortt.ca/recipes ); coconut shrimp with ginger tamarind dipping sauce (recipe also on my website); date rumaki (medjool dates stuffed with chèvre and almonds and wrapped in hickory bacon); savoury French toast with baked brie and red pepper jelly; and smoked salmon tartare on crisp potato rounds.

This smoked salmon recipe is easy and elegant and can be used in other applications (try some spread on a flatbread or pizza shell topped with goat cheese, in a wrap, folded into an omelet, or used as a gourmet sandwich filling)

smoked salmon tartare on crisp potato rounds

note: recipe can be halved

yield: about seven dozen hors d’oeuvres

ingredients

• eighteen ounces smoked salmon, diced
• one-quarter cup capers, rinsed and chopped
• one shallot, peeled and minced
• two to three tablespoons chopped fresh dill, plus more for garnish
• one teaspoon cracked black pepper
• zest of a lemon
• the juice of half a fresh lemon (may need more)
• good-quality olive-oil (one or two drizzles)
• herb potato crisps (two to three bags)
• full fat sour cream, crème fraîche or Devon cream, for garnish
  

method

• Combine all of the ingredients and toss gently.
• Check the seasoning, add more pepper or lemon juice, if necessary.
• Place a small dollop (about 1 teaspoon) of smoked salmon mixture on top of each potato round.
• Top salmon mixture with a small dollop of sour cream, crème fraîche or Devon cream and a sprig of fresh dill.