Thanksgiving officially kicked off the holiday entertaining season. It seems from now until Christmas, every weekend is busy, there are work parties, family get-togethers, and last-minute guests stopping by for cocktails. Our Thanksgiving dinner went very well; in addition to a sage and cider brined turkey, we had buttered carrots, Brussels sprouts with honey and rashers (Irish bacon), brown bread apple stuffing, homemade apple sauce, and a potato and turnip gratin. The only thing that didn’t turn out great was the gratin; since I was cooking away from home I used a much deeper bacon dish and different oven so the cheese cooked too quickly while the potatoes and turnips did not. Luckily there was plenty of other food, including starters like pears with blue and Comte cheeses and brown bread and a super easy salmon dip that literally disappeared in minutes.
You can’t beat a three ingredient recipe, especially when you are cooking an entire meal and need something to keep guests full and happy while they wait for the main event.
I made this dip to taste, so feel free to experiment with amounts of ingredients and to add things like chopped capers and lemon zest.
I simply mixed about 1/2 cup of chopped smoked salmon, 1/4 cup of finely chopped red onion, and a cup of Crème Fraiche and chilled it until we were ready to serve. When everyone had gathered, we poured glasses of bubbly, plated up some fresh brown bread, and set out all of the little bites on a table by the fire.
Simple, quality ingredients always make the best recipes, as I am reminded when we travel in Europe most of all.
We’re in Rome right now for the next couple of days, then on to Dublin to spend a night with family and then home to Boston again. I have taken hundreds of photos of our travels, food, and wine adventures, and while I would love to stay here, look forward to catching up with life at home.
Are you hosting any holiday events this year?
