Pacific Smoked Salmon and Goat Cheese Cornets with Beet Salad
This simple and fresh-tasting appetizer can be made ahead of time — a real plus. Salmon Cornets are filled with seasoned goat cheese and served with a bright beet salad dressed with raspberry vinegar. This is not only pretty, it also includes healthful salmon and fresh beets.
Ingredients
- Smoked Salmon - 4 ounces, sliced paper-thin
- Goat Cheese - 6 ounces, softened
- Heavy (whipping) cream - 1/4 cup
- Shallot - 1, minced
- Garlic Clove - 1 small, minced
- Chives - 6, minced
- Salt - 1/2 teaspoon
- Freshly ground black pepper - 1/2 teaspoon
- Raspberry Vinegar - 2 tablespoons
- Extra-Virgin Olive Oil - 5 tablespoons
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- Red Beets - 2 medium, cooked and cut into 1/4-inch dice
- Shallot - 1, chopped
- Garlic Clove - 1, chopped
- Chives - 12, minced
- Bell Pepper Coulis
- Yellow Bell Peppers - 2, seeded and deribbed
- Red Bell Peppers - 2, seeded and deribbed
- Olive Oil - 4 tablespoons
- Dry Vermouth - 1 cup
- Water - 1 cup
- Sweet Cecily (optional) - 6 sprigs (alt. flat-leaf parsley)
- Fennel Sprigs - 4
- Nasturtium Flowers - 6, (optional)
Instructions
Roll each salmon slice into 8 cone shapes.
Combine the cheese, cream, shallots, garlic, chives, salt, and pepper. Put in a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch star tip and pipe two tablespoons of the cheese mixture into each salmon cone. Put on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
In a medium nonaluminum bowl, mix the vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss the beets, shallot, garlic, and chives with this dressing. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate at least 1 hour.
To make the coulis: Cut the peppers into quarters or sixths, keeping each color separate. In two separate small saute pans over medium heat, saute each color in 2 tablespoons olive oil until soft; do not brown. Add half the vermouth to each pan. Bring the liquid to a boil and simmer until the peppers are very tender and the liquid has evaporated. Separately, puree the peppers in a blender or processor. Strain each through a fine sieve and put each into a squeeze bottle.
To serve: Put a steel ring at the “12 o’clock” position on a serving plate and pack with beet salad. Lift the ring and repeat with the other plates.Place two cornets on the lower part of each plate. Garnish with herbs and flowers. Drizzle the plates with red and yellow bell pepper coulis.
