For New Year: Smoked Salmon Dip

We held our family Christmas dinner two days early this year because of two of our kids' travel and work schedules. Usually our Christmas Eve dinner, missed this year, includes smoked salmon and cream and pickled herring. We managed to have both salmon and herring in our hors d'oeuvre course for our early Christmas dinner. But this time the salmon was worked into an elegant yet quickly prepared dip for rye crisps and crackers.

While we had it before Christmas, by the time this blog posting gets out, there will only be time to make it for New Year's Eve. It goes well with a crisp, lightly acidic white wine, like a Sauvignon Blanc. (I prefer New Zealand, but they are also good from Australia and South Africa, plus the lucious but more expensive originals are from the Loire Valley in France, like "Sancerre".)

The recipe makes enough for multiple diners, but the prepared dip keeps well as a leftover. (And it goes well on breakfast toast, if you can believe that.) While we used crispy baked goods on which to spread the dip, I would guess thinly sliced cucumbers could be used as well.

Smoked Salmon Dip Tim

8 ounces smoked salmon
1 cup regular sour cream (or low- or no-fat can be used)
1 rounded teaspoon prepared horseradish
Probably no extra salt
A little freshly snipped dill

Coarsely cut the salmon, then puree it in a food processor, scraping the sides down from time to time. Add the sour cream and horseradish and process until smooth and creamy. Taste for salt (there should already be plenty from the salmon) and add a little salt only if needed. With a spatula scrape the mixture into a serving dish. Sprinkle with snipped dill.

Accompany with rye crisp wafers, thinly sliced baguette, or low salt crackers. Or try thinly sliced cucumber, cut on an angle.