Easy smoked salmon appetizer with cream cheese
This quick and delicious smoked salmon appetizer is easy to make and takes you no more than about 10 minutes to make. That makes it the perfect quick appetizer for your Christmas (or Easter!) dinner party!
Smoked salmon and cream cheese appetizer
This delicious salmon appetizer is served in small glasses and is topped with some slices of smoked salmon. It’s one of my favorite appetizer recipes and so easy to make. It’s delicious served for Christmas dinner but will also work very well for Easter. Or any kind of dinner party. It’s a pretty simple appetizer, but that makes it perfect for a busy season. And all ingredients should be easily sourced at the grocery store.
In order to make this you really need only a few simple ingredients:
- smoked salmon
- flat leaf parsley
- lime
- block of cream cheese
- chives
- extra virgin olive oil
- salt and black pepper (optional)
- 1 small onion (red onion or a shallot)
You start by making your cream cheese mixture. You can make it a whipped cream cheese if you like but I simply mix it together with a fork. That works fine. It’s easiest if the cream cheese is at room temperature when you’re mixing it. You place the cream cheese in a small bowl and add the finely chopped onion, olive oil, herbs and lime zest and juice. You can swap the lime zest for lemon zest if you prefer.
Mix it together with a fork and taste if it needs salt and pepper. Keep in mind that you will also add smoked salmon so it will probably not need any extra salt added.
Finger food
There are two ways to serve these salmon appetizer bites. One way is to serve it as finger food by placing it on amuse spoons. I like to serve it as an easy appetizer in glasses. It’s also delicious to serve this with a variety of crackers so people can use this as a salmon dip recipe. Or make it into a smoked salmon crostini by placing the cream cheese on the crostini and serving with the smoked salmon on top. Pretty easy too. I wouldn’t necessarily call this a healthy appetizer but it does fit within a low carb diet.
However you want to serve the salmon appetizers you end the presentation by placing slices of salmon and some of the herbs you’re using on top.
Variations
If you are not a fan of salmon you can also easily swap the salmon for crispy bacon bits if you want. If you want to make it a little lighter you can add some sour cream to the cream cheese and mix the two together. If you don’t like chives you can replace this with some dill and make it a lemon dill cream cheese.
You can also add some finely diced cucumber to the glasses. If you do I would place the diced cucumber at the bottom of the glass, add the cream cheese on top and finish with the smoked salmon. If you struggle getting the cream cheese in the glass you can also use a piping bag to get it into the glass. That prevents messy glasses.
Can I make the salmon bites in advance?
Yes you can make this ahead of time. Cover if you place it in the refridgerator to prevent the salmon drying out.
What can I make to substitute the salmon?
Like I mentioned you can swap the salmon for crispy bits of bacon or if you still like fish but just not salmon, this will also work very well with mackerel or tuna. You can also substitute the smoked salmon for hot smoked salmon. That usually has lovely flakes and works great here too.
Like I said it is a perfect appetizer to serve for a family gathering, dinner party or Christmas. It’s pretty flexible and easy to prepare in advance.
You can find the full recipe in the recipe card below including the nutrient information. Let me know if you make it and if you enjoyed it! Would love to hear!
If you love salmon you can also try:
Smoked salmon and cream cheese appetizer
Equipment
- 8 small serving glasses
Ingredients
- 120 g smoked salmon
- 1 shallot finely chopped
- 2 tbsp chives finely sliced
- 2 tbsp flat leaf parsley finely sliced
- 500 g cream cheese natural
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 lime zest and juice
- You can replace the herbs in the recipe to whatever herbs you fancy. Dille is a classic combination with salmon but coriander will taste equally well.
- Peel the shallot and cut very finely. Submerge into boiling hot water for 30 seconds and then leave to dry on a paper kitchen towel.
- Cut the salmon into thin strips. This is easiest with a pair of scissors but a sharp knife will work as well.
- Place the cream cheese in a bowl and add the shallot, olive oil, lime zest and juice and the chopped herbs. Taste and if needed ad a little bit of salt. Keep in mind that the smoked salmon will also add salt so be careful with too much salt. Mix it well.
- Divide the mixture over the glasses and put a few strips of salmon on top. Decorate with a few sprigs of the herbs you have used and put in the fridge until you are ready to eat!
Nutrition Information per portion
Disclaimer
The nutritional values above are calculated per portion. The details are based on standard nutritional tables and do not constitute a professional nutritional advice.
