Salmon Puffs

January 1, 2005

Salmon Puffs

Your guests will think you’ve slaved for hours over these salmon puff appetizers, when they’re really quite simple to make. The puffs can even be prepared ahead and frozen, then crisped and filled just before serving. The recipe comes from Totem Smokehouse (www.totemsmokehouse.com), the Pike Place Market’s long-established smoked seafood store along Pike Place.

2 cans (6 1/2 ounces each) Totem Smokehouse smoked salmon or other canned smoked salmon

1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup diced celery
1/4 cup chopped green onion
2/3 cup Best Foods or Hellmann’s mayonnaise
1/4 cup catsup
1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
Cocktail Puffs (Recipe follows)
Preheat the oven to 400° F. Lightly grease two baking sheets and set aside.
Drain salmon, remove skin (if desired), and flake. Mix salmon with cheese, celery, green onion, mayonnaise, catsup, and dill weed and mix well.
Make Cocktail Puffs. Just before serving appetizers, split Cocktail Puffs with a serrated knife and fill with about 1 teaspoon of the salmon mixture. If desired, puffs may be baked ahead and frozen until ready to use. Before filling, crisp at 375° F for 2 to 3 minutes.
Makes 48 puffs

Cocktail Puffs

1 cup water
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
4 large eggs
Bring water, butter, and soy sauce to a boil in a medium saucepan. Stir in flour and salt and continue to stir over heat until mixture leaves sides of pan and forms a ball, about 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat, then cool to lukewarm, about 1/2 hour.
Whisk in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto baking sheets, bake for 20 to 25 minutes, and cool. Do not use more than a teaspoon of dough to make the puffs, or they will fall under their own weight and deflate when removed from the oven.