A Smoked Salmon Appetizer with dill and capers makes a perfect combination of flavors. They would be great for a happy hour treat. Gather up a few friends and neighbors and enjoy. Heck, you could make a light meal out of these if you want.
Ingredients Needed To Make Smoked Salmon Appetizer with Cream Cheese
This appetizer has such an over-the-top flavor and is made with simple ingredients.
- French bread baguette – A small diameter bread is best.
- Extra virgin olive oil – Use a good tasting olive oil for this recipe.
- Cream cheese – The cream cheese adds so much richness to the flavor of this appetizer.
- Fresh dill weed – Fresh dill weed is recommended for a pop of color and tangy flavor.
- Capers – Just a few on each appetizer provides a salty goodness.
- Smoked salmon – Cold smoked salmon is the easiest kind of salmon to use for the appetizer.
Use Cold Smoked Salmon
I saw a nice package of smoked salmon on sale so I fixed MaryJo and me this great smoked salmon dill and capers appetizer that turned into half of our dinner.
The salmon I used was Ducktrap, Scottish style Spruce Point, cold-smoked Atlantic salmon.
Cold smoked salmon is smoked at a very low temperature…like 80°F. It results in salmon that is tender and moist. It is sliced really thin and usually packaged in 3 or 4-ounce sizes.
Hot smoked salmon is a dry filet with firm flesh and tastes really good but is not a good fit for our delicate canape.
Making the Smoked Salmon Appetizer
The baguette that I used was an Italian 5-grain bread that Publix makes. First, you slice this pretty thin and toast it.
Do it like you are in Italy, put olive oil on the bread and toast it in a skillet and you have got a crostini. Simple. Next comes the cream cheese.
I’ve seen similar smoked salmon appetizers where they mix up different ingredients in the cream cheese spread, but I keep it real simple. Just spread some plain old softened cream cheese on the crostini.
Believe me, there are enough flavors running through these couple of mouthfuls to keep your taste buds entertained. You really don’t need anymore.
After that, lay on a sprig of fresh dill and place a few capers on the cheese. Fold up a slice of smoked salmon and push it into the cheese.
Add a few more capers here and there…take pictures!…then eat. They are perfect to serve at room temperature.
Serve these to your guests and you’ll achieve rock star status because these are so good to eat and they look really fancy.
The nice crunch of the toasted baguette compliments the softness of the cream cheese and moist salmon. The bit of saltiness from the capers and the flavor of the fresh dill make this a great smoked salmon appetizer.
Serve this salmon appetizer for any special occasion. This has got to be one of the top 10 smoked salmon appetizers there are.
Hey. Did you make this recipe? Let me know if you liked it in the comment section below. Also, drop a photo on your Instagram and tag @joeshealthymeals. I love seeing what you guys are making.
If you are big into different appetizers, you may like to try these too:
- Crab Cake Appetizers
- Instant Pot Chicken Wings
- Grilled Shrimp Kabobs
- Pepper Jelly with Cream Cheese
- Caribbean Salt Cod Fritters
Smoked Salmon Dill and Capers Appetizer
Ingredients
- 8 pieces of baguette , thinly sliced
- 2 tsp . extra virgin olive oil
- 2 oz . cream cheese
- fresh dill weed
- 1/4 c . drained capers
- 3 oz . thin sliced smoked salmon , (Ducktrap River Spruce point Scottish style smoked salmon, 4 oz. pkg)
Instructions
- Heat a heavy skillet on medium heat.
- Lightly brush both sides of the baguette slices with olive oil and place in the dry skillet.
- Toast until the desired char is achieved, about 2 mins.
- Turn and toast the second side, 2 mins.
- Spread each toasted baguette with cream cheese.
- Add a sprig of dill and 4 or 5 capers.
- Top with a slice of smoked salmon.
- Add a few more capers on each.
- Serve at room temperature.
Notes
- The package of smoked salmon that I used contained 7 thinly sliced pieces, approximately 4" by 5 " in size. On each baguette, I used 1/2 of a slice of salmon. I made 8 crostinis and had 3 slices of salmon left. The package, therefore, could make 6 more appetizers if desired.
Nutrition
This recipe post was updated on January 3, 2024.
Shirley
How long before serving can these be made?
Joe
Hi Shirley,
I have made them 1 or 2 hours ahead and the baguette will start to get soggy and unappealing. The olive oil is the culprit. I think that if you toasted the baguette dry, under your broiler, that you could make them and refrigerate even overnight and serve the next day. For serving, let them come to room temperature and drizzle just a little good olive oil on them to get the oil flavor. I have not tried doing this, but it seems to me the only way to not have soggy bread.
Good luck and thanks for the question. Now this is something that I’m going to experiment with.
Joe
Deb B
These are super easy to make and are addictive. Loved them!!!
Joe
Hi Deb. Thank you for the nice comment.
Joe
Kai
Hi, can you make these in advance? Or will the crostini soften up underneath the cream cheese? Alternately, can you just toast the baguettes in advance and just before serving layer with the salmon, cheese etc.?
Joe
Hi Kai,
I’m afraid that if you made them in advance they would probably get soft and soggy. I’ve made them an hour ahead of eating and took them to a party and they were starting to get soft and the oil was cold and overbearing. I’d say that you could lightly toast the bread with just a little bit of oil on one side of the bread beforehand. Then microwave the bread for 10 seconds to warm it, then layer the cheese and salmon. That should work. They are certainly best when eaten right away.
Thanks for asking.
Joe
Sandy
Can’t wait to make these! So beautiful to look at but I imagine, even more amazing to eat!!!
Catherine Ilkka
This is wonderful! So tasty and look beautiful.
Joe
Thank you Catherine.
Autumn
Was amazing
Pauline
Easy, elegant and delicious. Will be using this recipe over and over again. Party guests gobbled them up in minutes.
Joe
Thanks for the nice comment Pauline.
Paige
Best appetizer and easy! Its as delish as it looks. I made a meal out of it. 10 stars.
Joe
Thanks Paige…I love it too.
Lauren
Could you share the brand of the salmon you used and where you got it? I tried Woodman’s and Festival and couldn’t find sliced smoked salmon.
Joe
Hi Lauren. The smoked salmon I used was Ducktrap Spruce Point, cold smoked salmon. I found it at Publix groceries in Florida. I’ll put a link in the recipe post to the Ducktrap website. Their website also has a page showing all the stores you can find their products.
Heather Thayer
Could you swap cucumber slices for the crackers? The party I’m hosting has a no carb attende
Joe
That would be perfectly fine Heather…I’m sure the cucumber and dill would taste great together.
Mary
We had our caterer make these for our wedding and they were absolutely delicious! In fact, several people later commented on how good they were and wanted the recipe!
Joe
Hey Mary…thanks for the nice compliment and congratulations!
Eileen
super appetizer!
Joe
Thanks Eileen.
MaryJo
These were outstanding! Super simple to make and so delicious.