Salmon Pâté (pronounced: “Paahh-taaae”)

This year, my birthday was a bit of a blur.

I remember waking up, getting ready, and heading out the door so I could begin cooking and party planning for the day, but when I actually applied my makeup or found time to wash the dishes escapes me….

My goal was to show a whole list of party foods prepared for my friends, but, the truth is, I was having such a good time cooking and hanging out with my friend Lydia well before the festivities started that I had forgotten to take pictures.  

But, I did remember to make my favorite appetizer—Salmon Pâté.

The day didn’t quite feel “birthday-esque” in the traditional sense—although Facebook was quick to remind me repeatedly that it was—until I cooked myself something special.  Linda’s Smoked Salmon Pâté (pronounced: “paaahhh-taaaa”) with buttery crackers and plenty of dill always makes me feel a little bit fancy (even though preparing them takes relatively no work at all).

 Pictured: Linda’s Salmon Pâté that I’ve loved since childhood.  Filled with a little bit of sour cream and butter and plenty of dill, it’s a salty/savory spread that impressed even my most finicky birthday guests.

Salmon Pâté is incredibly easy to whip up—throw a handful of ingredients into a food processor  and pulse to combine.  Season accordingly, and you’ve spent almost no time on prep and not even five or ten minutes “cooking” (if using a food processor can really be called “cooking”).

And, I would also argue that this spread is the perfect solution for when you’ve over-burdened yourself with too lofty a dinner menu and perhaps invited too many guests.

Pictured: Salmon Pâté doesn’t have to be the stuff of uppity fancy foods.  Keep it simple with a few everyday ingredients and good-quality smoked salmon from the grocery store.

When I was growing up, I always associated the word “pâté” with icky, fancy foods that you had to eat while sipping champagne.  But Linda’s version of a basic salmon pâté is so simple, so creamy that I’ve often thought of renaming it something like, “yummy salmon spread.”  Because, really, “pâté,” just means “paste” in French.

For this birthday and next, I hope to share this treat with my friends and you.  If you have sour cream and butter in your fridge and a little dill and salt and pepper in your pantry, all you need is the salmon.  Why not pick some up today? Pleeeaaassseee? It’s my birthday.

Salmon Pâté

Yield: 24 (bite-size) appetizer servings

Calories: 36.4 calories per serving (see here for full nutritional information)

Prep Time: 5 to 10 minutes

Cook Time: N/A

This recipe comes from the Harrowsmith Fish & Seafood Cookbook (1985).  I love fish and shellfish, and it can be extremely difficult to find a recipe book that offers easy, simple seafood recipes for such a wide variety of dishes.  For anyone who cooks seafood regularly, this recipe book is a must.  Plus, with its current age (1985), most copies can be found in Used, or Good condition on Amazon for 1-cent plus shipping and handling.

Ingredients:

* 1 (12-ounce) package smoked salmon

* 1/2 cup sour cream (I used lowfat)

* 3 tablespoons butter (I used 3 tablespoons, but the original calls for 4)

* 1 tablespoon dill, plus more (as necessary), to taste

* Salt and pepper, to taste

1.) Combine all ingredients in a food processor.  Pulse to combine until smooth and fully integrated.

2.) Season to taste with more dill and pepper (you most likely won’t need to add more salt given the salty nature of the smoked fish).  Pulse again to combine and adjust spices as necessary.

3.) Serve with crackers or toasted bread.  Makes 24 small, appetizer-size servings.

–Helana Brigman

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