A few weeks ago I was approached by reps for the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute, asking if I was willing to be their representative at the International Food Blogging Conference. I would need to create a recipe using their Cook it Frozen technique (which I already knew I LOVED having prepared their seafood with this technique in the past) which would then be prepared by a local LA caterer and served at Friday night's dinner, at which I would be required to be present.
I accepted, of course, and this appetizer is the result. It was challenging to come up with an appetizer that you could pick up with one hand using either wild salmon, halibut or cod, but I think I pulled it off. I had a couple of {what I thought were} great ideas along the way: curried fish served in roasted baby potato cups being another favorite (and it's thisclose to being good enough with a few more tweaks). But I ultimately chose this one on the likelihood that it will appeal to the masses more that a curry might.
I'm really looking forward to heading to Santa Monica later this week to meet the ASMI folks! I'm also getting the chance to have drinks with my agent, Tim Kessler, for the first time since I was signed, plus the chance to hang out with some old friends. Not to mention the opportunity to attend IFBC and hopefully come away with some inspiration! And I really don't need to mention that if all I got to do was sit on the beach for four days I wouldn't need one more thing to make me happy!
Here's my recipe - I hope you try it and enjoy it! It's quite easy and would be an impressive dish at your next dinner party. Cheers!
Herbed Blinis with Wild Alaskan Salmon & Lemon-Caper Creme Fraiche
The beauty of this elegant appetizer is that the creme fraiche and blinis can be made ahead and your fish quickly roasted using the Cook-It-Frozen technique (below).
Lemon-Caper Creme Fraiche
- ½ cup creme fraiche (can use sour cream if creme fraiche is not available)
- zest and juice of one lemon
- 2 T. each very finely chopped parsley and dill
- ¼ cup capers
- kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Mix all ingredients together. Chill for at least two hours to allow flavors to blend.
Herbed Blinis
- 3 eggs
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 1 cup milk
- 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 5 chives, diced
- 5 green onions, diced
Beat eggs in large bowl; stir in buttermilk and milk. Add flour and salt, stir well. Mix in herbs just until combined. Let batter rest while you prepare the fish.
Wild Alaskan Salmon
- 4 wild alaskan salmon filets, frozen
- kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
- olive oil, for brushing
Preheat oven to 450 degrees Farenheit. Remove salmon from packaging. Run each filet under cold water to remove any ice on outside of filet (about 10 seconds or so) and thoroughly pat dry. Spray sheet pan with oil and place filets on pan. Place filets in oven and roast for 4 minutes. Remove from oven, brush with olive oil and season liberally with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Return to oven and roast for another 5-8 minutes or until cooked through.
Make the blinis: preheat large skillet or griddle over medium heat. Coat surface with butter, then add a scant 1 Tablespoon of blini batter to skillet, as many times as skillet space allows. Cook until a few bubbles appear and the edges of blini begin to look cooked (should be golden brown on bottom). Flip blinis and cook other side until lightly browned and cooked through.
ASSEMBLE: Place a bite-sized (or slightly larger) amount of salmon on each blini. Top with a teaspoon of creme fraiche. Garnish with fresh dill.
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Jtillmanct says
That looks amazing!!!! I'm going to try tis one
Hans Bauer says
I love salmon and I have not had it in a while; this Alaskan Salmon dish looks very original and tasty! Have bookmarked this page; I look forward to preparing it on Sunday when my parents come over !
caleb says
I'm new here and this recipe caught my eye. I'm excited with the entirety of this dish especially with how the creme fraiche will compliment with the taste of the salmon. my palates can't wait!
amanda says
The presentation of this dish is so enticing!The Herbed Blinis with the salmon and the creme fraichee on top looks 'parfait'. This is absolutely worth a try-- I'm way excited. Thank you for sharing your new recipe.
Samantha says
Wow, now I know what to do with all that salmon in my freezer!
Selina says
I was really nervous about cooking for my in laws but I made this and it worked like magic. Then everyone was asking me for the recipe. Thank you so much!
Natalie says
This recipe is quite original in term of the ingredients for
the toppings. I will give it a try soon!
Slab says
I made this and it is delicious. I could eat it with just about everything. Thanks!
Natalie says
This recipe is quite original in terms of the ingredients for
the toppings. I will definitely give it a try soon!
Sandy says
Hi Kristy,
had to mention you and your great Blinis in my latest blogpost! It was my favorite item this night on IFBC dinner. It was so nice to meet you, hope you are well, with best greetings and hugs from Germany,
Sandy
the wicked noodle says
Hi Sandy,
What a nice comment! Thank you so much. I'm so glad we had the chance to meet; I absolutely adore you and your never-ending smile. I thought about you after the conference and realized I never had a chance to say goodbye. Please send me your blog address so I can start following you, too.
Best,
Kristy
Branappetit says
how fun! so jealous you get to go to IFBC 🙂 it's on my wish list for next year!
the wicked noodle says
I'm really looking forward to it! I'll get to see some really good friends, too - yay!!
GFDoctor says
Are they going to have the components separately and prep them there? It would be wonderful to sample, I love salmon. But if they prep it off and bring it already layered, then there is gluten.
No worries, I am sure there will be something else for me to eat, otherwise I just look at going to conferences as a chance to fast. 🙂
the wicked noodle says
I'm really not sure. They had me create the recipe but I don't know the process the caterer will go through when serving. I'm hoping they don't assemble it before arrival though as it won't be nearly as good. And you're right - there will be plenty to eat. This is just a quick bite right out of the gate 🙂
GFDoctor says
This looks amazing! Just wish that you might have a few of the potato cups around as well for us Gluten-Free folks. Otherwise, we will have to pass.
But the sauce looks amazing and I will definitely rework the blinis to be gluten free soon.
the wicked noodle says
What a bummer 🙁 Not having any dietary restrictions I sometimes forget that there are so many people out there who have to watch what they eat. You could enjoy just the salmon and creme fraiche, though - it's delicious even without the blini. But I promise I'll refine my potato cups and maybe they'll make it to the event next year 🙂
Baobabs says
yum!! this looks great. fab idea for canapes!!!
Dolly says
I haven't tried the herbed blinis (I had no buttermilk), but I did have some leftover creme fraiche, and so I made the lemon-caper creme fraiche and put it over some salmon for dinner. Quick, easy, and everyone loved it. Thanks for posting
Crystal says
The ingredients list in your recipe is so simple, but these are quite impressive appetizers.
Gordon says
The Cook It Frozen technique looks like it would really save me from a lot of hassles. I'm always either wating for something to thaw out, or in a hurry to cook something because it's been thawed for too long.
Carl says
Wow, you have an agent? You are such a high roller 🙂 Enjoy the conference.
Jill says
No doubt the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute picked a great representative, your recipe sounds amazing. Have a good trip, let us know how it goes.
Raynah says
I'm not sure what compels me to want to try this dish more, the recipe or your gorgeous pictures. The salmon blini looks both beautiful and delicious.
Sam says
This looks like a really good dish for salmon. I've been concentrating on getting more Omega 3 in my diet, and between this and your other great fish recipes it look like it will be easy.
Robert says
The cook it frozen technique is great! I've tried it once and loved it, my fish came out perfectly.
Hunter says
The lemon caper creme fraiche looks fantastic. I just bought a big jar of capers for chicken francais, and I think I know what I'm going to do with the rest of them now. Thanks for the idea!
Michelle says
These look really interesting, I'm sure it will be a hit! Yes, crating a finger-food salmon appetizer would be quite a challenge. Some that I've seen done - Salmon Teriyaki (on skewers), panko coated salmon fishsticks (really great idea but a little messier than intended), and of course salmon dip. Yours looks so much more sophisticated 🙂
Alison says
I'm definitely going to try this recipe - My husband and his friends go Salmon fishing every year, and I'm looking for something new to do with the epic amounts of salmon that he brings home. Have fun at the conference!
CookingwithBeau.com says
I love this!!!!!!! This is really elegant and delicious!!!! I did a similar sandwich on my blog http://www.cookingwithbeau.com but I really really like this!!!!!!! Thank you!!!!!!!!!!