Smoked Salmon Bites Appetizer with Cucumber
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Ideal for your next dinner party or happy hour, these Smoked Salmon Bites with cucumber are a delicious and easy appetizer. Crispy phyllo shells are filled with cream cheese, sour cream, cucumber, and spices, then topped with cold smoked salmon and herbs, making for a flavorful (and pop-able) bite.
This salmon appetizer recipe is a great way to provide little bites before the main course at your next party. Crispy and creamy with just the right amount of smoked salmon, these smoked salmon bites are a crowd pleaser that won’t ruin your appetite.
Made with simple ingredients easily found at your local grocery store, they’re an elegant option for holidays, bridal showers, Mother’s Day and all of your special occasions.
Want more recipes with phyllo cups? Try one of these: Honey, Walnut, and Goat Cheese Phyllo Cups, my Brie Cheese and Spiced Cranberry Bites, cinnamon-spiced Mini Apple Pie Bites, Mini Lemon Tarts with fresh blackberries, or my Fresh Strawberry Bites with Cream Cheese.
Ingredients
- Phyllo Cups – These come pre-made in the freezer section of your grocery store. All you need to do is crisp them up in the oven.
- Cream Cheese – Choose full fat or low fat plain cream cheese for these bites.
- Sour Cream – Any kind of dairy sour cream works here – full fat, low fat, fat free – it’s your choice.
- Cucumber – I like an English cucumber for this recipe since it has less seeds, but feel free to use whatever kind of cucumber you like best.
- Lemon – You’ll need a whole lemon as we’re using both the juice and zest for this appetizer. Plan on 1 lemon for the recipe.
- Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Salt – Seasonings to enhance the flavor of the cream cheese and keep it savory.
- Smoked Salmon – We’re using cold smoked salmon for this appetizer, which is creamier and has the texture of lox. It’s easier to thinly slice and pile up on top of the cream cheese.
- Fresh Chives – A few finely diced chives look cute and give each bite a little onion flavor. Can’t find chives? Use thinly sliced green onion tops instead.
How to Make Smoked Salmon Bites (Step by Step)
Bake the phyllo cups according to package directions. Set aside.
Make the Filling
Peel the cucumber and grate it onto a paper towel.
Gently squeeze and press the paper towel around the shredded cucumber to remove as much liquid as possible.
Note: 👆 This step 👆 is very important! Otherwise you will have too much liquid in your filling and it will be very messy and runny.
Place cream cheese, sour cream, shredded cucumber, lemon juice, lemon zest, onion powder, garlic powder, and salt in a food processor.
Process until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed.
To Assemble the Bites
Place a teaspoon of cream cheese mixture into a phyllo cup.
Top with a few small pieces (or one large piece) of smoked salmon.
Sprinkle with chives.
Repeat with the remaining phyllo cups. Serve immediately.
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Smoked Salmon Bites Appetizer with Cucumber
Ingredients
- 15 phyllo cups, 1 package
- ½ cup cream cheese, softened
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ½ cup cucumber, grated (about half of an English cucumber)
- 1 ½ tsp lemon juice, fresh
- 1 tsp lemon zest, fresh
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 4 oz cold smoked salmon, thinly sliced
- 2 Tbsp chives, fresh, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Bake the phyllo cups according to package directions. Set aside.15 phyllo cups
Make the filling:
- Grate ½ cup of cucumber onto a paper towel. Gently squeeze and press the paper towel around the shredded cucumber to remove as much liquid as possible.½ cup cucumber
- Note: This step is very important, otherwise you will have too much liquid in your filling and it will be very messy and runny.
- Place cream cheese, sour cream, shredded cucumber, lemon juice, lemon zest, onion powder, garlic powder, and salt in a food processor.½ cup cream cheese, softened, ¼ cup sour cream, 1 ½ tsp lemon juice, 1 tsp lemon zest, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder, ½ tsp salt
- Pulse until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed.
To assemble:
- Place a teaspoon of cream cheese mixture into a phyllo cup.
- Top with a piece of smoked salmon.4 oz cold smoked salmon
- Sprinkle with chives.2 Tbsp chives
- Repeat with the remaining phyllo cups. Serve immediately.
Notes
Recipe Tips
The filling can be made up to 3 days ahead of time. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use, then bring it up to room temperature and give it a good stir before filling the shells.
Don’t assemble the smoked salmon cups more than an hour before you’re ready to serve them or the shells will get soggy.
Don’t have phyllo cups? They’re popular at the holidays, and can get hard to find. Turn these into salmon crostini and use homemade crostini in place of the phyllo cups. Or slice the remaining cucumber into rounds and pile the filling onto cucumber slices.
Looking for More Easy Appetizer Recipes?
Love a good appetizer spread, but don’t want to spend all day making it? Try serving my Goat Cheese Phyllo Cups, this easy Smoked Salmon Dip, some vegetarian Stuffed Mushrooms, no bake Blueberry and Goat Cheese Dip, super fresh Bruschetta al Pomodoro (Tomato Bruschetta), and a super quick Whipped Ricotta Dip along side these Smoked Salmon Bites.
Drink Pairings for Smoked Salmon Bites
Creamy snacks call for crisp, tart drinks. Serve my Apple Cider Sangria, or a Lemon Drop Martini along with these Smoked Salmon Bites. Want something non-alcoholic? Try Blueberry Lavender Lemonade or my Citrus Apple Mocktails.
