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Smoked Salmon Crostini with Avocado Cream

Source of Recipe

From "Back Around the Table" by David Venable


Recipe Introduction

"Sometimes I feel like hosting a party that's a little more on the elegant side, a bit more formal. That calls for an appetizer that's a little fancy, but not difficult—silky smoked salmon on toasts topped with a simple avocado cream. Arrange the crostini on your best crystal or silver platter and pour Prosecco-Pomegranate Cocktails to accompany them. Now, where did I put my tuxedo?"

List of Ingredients

Crostini:
â—¦ 1 baguette, sliced into 12 ½-inch pieces
â—¦ Extra virgin olive oil
â—¦ Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Avocado Cream:
â—¦ 2 ripe avocados
â—¦ ½ cup mascarpone
â—¦ 2 tablespoons sour cream
â—¦ 2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
â—¦ 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh cilantro
â—¦ Juice of 1 lime
â—¦ ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
â—¦ Freshly ground black pepper
â—¦ 4 ounces sliced smoked salmon, in 12 pieces


Recipe

Turn on the oven to broil.

To make the crostini, arrange the bread slices in a single layer on a baking sheet. Brush each slice with olive oil and sprinkle on a little salt and pepper. Broil the bread slices until they are light golden brown and crunchy, about 2 minutes. Remove the crostini from the oven and let cool.

To make the avocado cream, halve the avocados, remove the pits, and scoop out the flesh into a food processor. Add the mascarpone, sour cream, 1 ½ tablespoons of the red onion, the cilantro, and lime juice to the food processor and blend until creamy. Season with the salt and pepper.

Spread 1 tablespoon avocado cream on each slice of toasted bread. Top each with a piece of folded smoked salmon. Sprinkle the remaining ½ tablespoon chopped red onion on the crostini before serving.

Makes 12



Prosecco-Pomegranate Cocktails

Prosecco, a crisp, dry sparkling wine from northeastern Italy, is an inexpensive alternative to Champagne from France. Prosecco can be enjoyed on its own or paired with fruit juice in cocktails. I wanted to create a festive drink to serve friends and family, especially at the holiday season. What better way than to combine Prosecco, pomegranate juice, and a hint of orange in this colorful cocktail. Blood orange bitters can be found in wine and gourmet stores. Fresh, ruby red pomegranate seeds are now available in many markets year-round and save you the trouble of seeding the fruit.

â—¦ 6 sugar cubes
â—¦ 6 tablespoons blood orange bitters
â—¦ 6 ounces pomegranate juice
â—¦ 1 750-ml bottle Prosecco, chilled
â—¦ 6 orange twists
â—¦ Pomegranate seeds

Place one sugar cube in each of six champagne flutes. Cover each sugar cube with 1 tablespoon blood orange bitters. Pour 1 ounce pomegranate juice into each flute and stir with a long-handled spoon. Slowly fill each flute with Prosecco. Garnish each drink with an orange twist and a few pomegranate seeds.

Makes 6