COOK: Smoked Trout & Herb Cream Cheese Spread

• Serving Ideas for Homemade Smoked Trout Spread
• Smoked Trout Spread Ingredients
• Equipment Needed
• How to Make Smoked Trout Spread
• Smoked Trout Dip Recipe Variation
• Storage Instructions
• Related Links:

Serving Ideas for Homemade Smoked Trout Spread

Of course, this creamy smoked trout spread is fantastic on bagels. But it’s also great on crackers, crispbread, rye toast, flatbreads, flax and seed crackers, and celery sticks. It makes an elegant filling for tea sandwiches or pinwheels for your next party (or just to treat yourself).

Or make one of the smoked trout dip variations and serve with crusty bread, cucumber slices, or other crudites. It tastes fancy, but only takes a few minutes and a few ingredients to make!

Make savory profiteroles with choux paste puffs or gougères for an elegant appetizer or hor d’oeuvre. You can fill them with a spoonful of the spread, or use a pastry bag and tip to pipe a bit of the thinner dip variation. It’s also nice in puff pastry shells or savory tartlets, or piped or spooned on individual Belgian endive leaves.

Try a few spoonfuls of your trout spread rolled up in an omelette and garnish with more fresh herbs. Add a salad of spring greens for a fancy brunch or light lunch! Serve with roasted or smoked smashed potatoes or crispy potato wedges, latkes, or on a baked potato. Try mixing the trout dip with egg yolk and a teaspoon of horseradish mustard to make fancy deviled eggs!

Smoked Trout Spread Ingredients

Cream Cheese:

You’ll use a standard block of regular cream cheese for this recipe. You can substitute a package of neufchatel cheese if you prefer to make a lower-fat smoked trout spread.

Soften the cream cheese by letting it come up to room temperature before mixing. If you are in a hurry, put the unopened foil package in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes to warm it up quickly!

Smoked Trout:

I used homemade canned smoked trout but you can use quality commercial canned or fresh smoked trout. I used about four ounces, which is the size of most readily available cans of smoked trout.

Flavorings:

You’ll want fresh herbs for this recipe. I used dill, but chives or chervil are also very nice, or a blend of those. Parsley can work in a pinch, with some dried dill. Fresh ground black pepper, always, and a pinch of salt. Adjust the salt to how salty your smoked trout is… if it’s very salty, use a little less salt. Use less salt if you’re using kosher or sea salt, and slightly more if you’re using flaky Maldon salt, which has larger crystals.

Equipment Needed

You can make this by hand, but it’s easiest with a food processor. You could also use a stand mixer with a paddle attachment to whip the cream cheese and herbs, then fold in the fish. A sturdy silicone spatula will help make sure you get every bit of your dip out of the mixing container and into your serving or storage dish. Otherwise this is a pretty minimal recipe that doesn’t require any special equipment.

How to Make Smoked Trout Spread

step one:

Soften your cream cheese. Whip it, either by hand, or using a mixer or food processor. Make sure it is smooth and has no lumps remaining.

step two:

Add the freshly ground black pepper and the flaky salt, and pulse to mix until combined.

step three & four:

Chop the herbs and add them to the food processor or mixer bowl. Pulse a few more times, scrape down the bowl with a flexible spatula, and pulse again. You don’t want to pulverize the herbs, just distribute them evenly.

Note: if you are making the smoked trout dip variation (see below), add the additional ingredients now. 

step five & six:

Add the smoked trout (along with any liquid from the container) and pulse or mix just to combine. The trout will break up as you mix. You aren’t trying to make a smooth puree, just break up the fish in the mixture while keeping some textural interest.

If you are mixing by hand, you may want to flake the fish a bit before mixing it in if it isn’t breaking apart easily. Scrape down the food processor or mixer bowl with a spatula between short pulses, and finish folding the fish in by hand if the mixture is getting too smooth.

step seven & eight:

Using the flexible spatula, transfer your spread or dip to a serving bowl or airtight storage container. Garnish with a sprig of herbs and more freshly cracked black pepper if you like. Keep chilled and serve or refrigerate immediately.

Smoked Trout Dip Recipe Variation

You can easily convert this recipe into a savory smoked trout dip by adding about a half cup of sour cream, plain greek yogurt, or mayonnaise, or a quarter cup of mayo + a quarter cup of sour cream or yogurt. Or for a truly luxurious dip, use creme fraiche!

Add these to the whipped cream cheese mixture before adding the trout. If you want a thinner dip, add a few more spoonfuls of sour cream or mayo to the mixture until you get the consistency you want.

A tablespoon or two of nonpareil capers or chopped capers is a nice addition, or a bit of minced preserved lemon. Add a tablespoon of dijon or horseradish mustard or prepared horseradish cream for a zippy trout dip!

Storage Instructions

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. I don’t recommend freezing this dip as it may separate or break when it’s thawed, or have a less smooth texture, but if you try it and it works out for you, let me know in the comments (it never lasts long enough in our house to need to though).

Related Links:

• How to Can Smoked Trout

• Smoked Trout Toasts

• Spicy Pizza Spread with Giardiniera