Potato Baskets Filled with Salmon

Potato baskets filled with salmon are an elegant and tasty appetizer, perfect for special occasions or for a gourmet meal. Here’s how to prepare them:

Ingredients

• 4 medium-sized potatoes
• 200 g of smoked salmon slices
• 150 g of spreadable cheese (such as Philadelphia)
• 1 tablespoon of fresh dill, chopped
• 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Chives for garnish

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C.
2. Wash and dry the potatoes, then prick them in several places with a fork. Lightly oil them with extra virgin olive oil and wrap each one individually in aluminum foil. Bake in the oven for about 1 hour or until they are soft.
3. Once cooked, allow the potatoes to cool slightly, then cut the top off and gently scoop them out with a teaspoon, leaving a thick layer of about 1 cm attached to the skin to maintain the shape of the basket.
4. Mash the potato flesh in a bowl and mix it with a drizzle of oil, salt, pepper, and some chopped dill.
5. Line the inside of each potato basket with slices of salmon.
6. In a bowl, mix the spreadable cheese with the lemon juice and remaining dill. Season with salt and pepper.
7. Fill the potato baskets with the cheese mixture and top each with a rolled slice of salmon.
8. Decorate each basket with a tuft of chives.
9. Serve the potato baskets filled with salmon at room temperature or slightly warmed according to preference.

Curiosity

Smoked salmon is a very versatile ingredient and is appreciated for its delicate yet distinctive flavor. The technique of smoking salmon has ancient origins and was used for fish preservation, especially in Nordic countries.

To give an even more Italian touch to this dish, you could use basil as the aromatic herb instead of dill, and maybe add some cubes of buffalo mozzarella inside the basket for a fusion of flavors between Northern Europe and the Mediterranean.