DIY Christmas 2012 with Cathy Pegau


Holy moley. I think I died and went to heaven. Last year, Cathy Pegau tempted us with salmon pasta. This year it's a salmon dip. I am definitely making this for the next party.

And look! There's a giveaway. Leave a comment for your chance to win.

PS  You can also leave a comment on Shelley Munro's giveaway too. All contests end December 21st. So you have a chance to go back to any previous giveaway during this year's DIY series.



SMOKED SALMON SPREAD

Yeah, I know. Last year for DIY I had a smoked salmon pasta recipe. What can I tell you, we have a lot of salmon here. And since I’m a big fan of fast and convenient, we use it a lot.

When I make this spread for company, I have to give explicit instructions to my kids to keep out of it until the guests arrive. They would devour the entire bowl before the doorbell rang if I didn’t.

Super simple and super yummy. That’s how I roll ; )

You will need:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
4-6 oz. sour cream
Dash of lemon juice
8 oz. smoked salmon, broken up into flaky bits. If canned, save liquid.
1 green onion, white part diced
1-2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. paprika, smoked if you have it otherwise regular paprika is fine, plus some for garnish
1 tsp. dried parsley or 1 ½ tsp fresh, with a little reserved for garnish
Salt and pepper to taste

What you do:
Whip cream cheese and about 4 oz. of sour cream together. Add lemon juice. Add more sour cream if necessary to make the consistency “dippable” meaning swiping a cracker through it won’t break the cracker or have it running off in a soggy mess. A little stiff is fine if you’re going to add some liquid from the salmon.

Fold in salmon, onion and spices. Taste it. Adjust spices as needed. Taste again. And again. Okay, you can stop now. Hey! This is for guests! Put. The spoon. Down.

Spoon into serving bowl, smooth surface and sprinkle paprika and parsley on top. Very festive, yes? Serve with your favorite crackers or crostini.

Enjoy!

Cathy Pegau lives in Alaska with her husband and two daughters. Husband loves to fish and Cathy and the girls love to eat it. Win-win.

Cathy’s new release CAUGHT IN AMBER is a science fiction romance coming from Carina Press January 28, 2013. Read an excerpt here: http://cathypegau.com/?page_id=12 and pre-order it from Amazon here: http://tinyurl.com/bg4ugam if you’re so inclined.


Drop a note in the comments and someone will receive a free copy of CAUGHT IN AMBER ; )

Comments

Sarah Ahiers said…
Ummm. That sounds delicious! And now i'm hungry (and want some salmon)
Gwen Gardner said…
Yummmmy! Cream cheese and sour cream and Salmon? I'm afraid it would disappear before the guests arrived. Definitely want to try this one. Thanks Cathy:)
Angela Brown said…
Two words: Nom Nom!!

Sounds so delish!
Maria Zannini said…
I am going to a New Year's Eve party so I am definitely making this as my contribution.

I like easy. And I like salmon. Win-win.
Shelley Munro said…
I'm a fan of anything salmon, and this sounds delicious. Thanks for sharing :)
Cathy in AK said…
Hope you all like it : )
Jennifer Shirk said…
THIS sounds PERFECT for me to serve on Christmas Eve!
Mike Keyton said…
I still cook your salmon pasta from last year's recipe, Cathy. This one sounds really interesting, but alas, I'm trapped by my own family recipe here. No going back : )One salmon tip I would share however, and it's painfully mundane - salmon baked or fried is fabulous on buttered and seasoned Swede. (That's the root vegetable before there's a homicide and the Defence come looking for me)
Melissa McClone said…
Yum!!! Love this series! I'm glad I popped over so I don't have too much to catch up on. Been dealing with some real life stuff so not on-line as much.
Cathy in AK said…
I've never had Swede, seasoned or otherwise ; ) Thanks, Mike. I'm glad you're enjoying the pasta recipe!