Author Notes
This recipe is an attempt to recreate an appetizer I’ve enjoyed at a local restaurant. The original uses a hot smoked salmon, I’ve substituted lox, mostly because I love the freshness and brininess of the cold smoked fish. This recipe cheats by using a bag of kettle-style potato chips. Home-made potato chips are fantastic, but a lot of work if you're entertaining. The chips will get soggy fairly quickly once the spread is on; so spread, eat, and repeat. Pita chips, toasted or grilled bread, etc. will also work. In this recipe, I've provided for a quick pickling of the red onions. One, it takes the bite out of the onion, and two, it tastes great. You can skip the pickling and just use raw onion. —Pete
Ingredients
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8 ounces
cream cheese (1 8 oz. soft spread tub)
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2 tablespoons
sun dried tomatoes (packed in oil) finely chopped
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1 teaspoon
Tabasco Chipotle Sauce (more or less to taste)
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1 1/2 teaspoons
sugar
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3 teaspoons
lime juice
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4 tablespoons
chives
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salt
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3 - 4
medium plum tomatoes
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1/2 cup
red onion, finely diced
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1 tablespoon
olive oil
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1
bag potato chips, kettle style
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1
jar capers
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6 ounces
Lox (or Nova salmon)
Directions
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FOR THE SPREAD:
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Bring the cream cheese to room temperature. In a bowl, combine the cream cheese with the sun dried tomatoes, sugar, 2 tsp. lime juice, the Tabasco Chipotle Sauce, and 2 tbsp chives. Mix to incorporate thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
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Note: You can shortcut on the chives by using a cream cheese that already has chives in it (e.g. Philadelphia brand … it serves in a pinch). Also, you can substitute the Tobasco sauce with the real thing ... add according to your tastes some chopped chipotle pepper with some adobo sauce.
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TOMATO SALSA
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In a small bowl, combine diced red onion with vinegar and let sit for at least 15 minutes.
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Cut tomatoes in half crosswise and scoop out seeds. Finely chop the fresh tomato to obtain about 1 cup. Drain the vinegar from the red onion and combine the red onion with the chopped tomato . Add 1 tbsp olive oil with 1 tsp lime juice and mix with a couple of quick stirs. Add salt to taste.
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PREPARATION:
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Sort through the bag of kettle-style chips to find the largest.
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Spread about 2 tsp of cream cheese spread on each chip (there’s no real measurement – try a few to find the desired amount for your taste).
Lay a generous strip of lox (about the length of the the chip) on top of the spread.
Spoon tomato salsa onto salmon. Sprinkle with some chopped chives and place 3 - 4 capers on top.
Serve immediately.
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