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Smashed Potato Canapes with Smoked Salmon

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

We’ve all eaten smoked salmon on bagels or toast points, but for something different, try this delicacy on crispy smashed potatoes. In place of smoked salmon, use salmon roe or another domestic caviar. Elegant!

Ingredients

For the potatoes:

  • 12 small Yukon gold potatoes, each about 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Coarse salt (kosher or sea)
  • Freshly ground black pepper

For serving:

  • Sour cream or crème fraiche
  • Thinly sliced cold-smoked salmon
  • Brined capers, drained
  • Fresh dill sprigs

Directions

Step 1

Bring a large pot of salted water and the potatoes to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook until the potatoes are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. (Check tenderness by piercing a potato with a bamboo skewer or the tip of a paring knife.) Drain the potatoes and pat dry. Working on a rimmed sheet pan, coat the potatoes with olive oil.

Step 2

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Using a potato masher or the bottom of a small cast-iron skillet or large flat-bladed spatula, carefully crush the warm potatoes until each is about 3/4 inch thick but still intact. Drizzle each with a bit more olive oil. Season the tops with salt and pepper.

Step 3

Bake the potatoes for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown. (There’s no need to flip.) Arrange the smashed potatoes in a single layer on a platter alongside the suggested serving ingredients. To eat, fold a piece of salmon on a potato, then top with a spoonful of sour cream. Garnish with capers and dill sprigs.

Serves 4 as an appetizer

Bell Pepper “Empanadas”

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

This take on empanadas de queso is perfect when you want melted cheesy goodness but would rather skip the dough. Preferred in Chile is the very buttery queso chanco, a cheese that’s close in taste and texture to our Muenster. Though not traditional in empanadas, merquén adds a nice zest (you can substitute pimentón if it’s already on your spice shelf). To make this more of a meal, toss the shredded cheese with 1 cup of cooked brown rice or quinoa before stuffing into the peppers. Eat them with a knife and fork or with your hands, empanada style.

Ingredients

  • 8-ounce block Muenster cheese
  • 4 medium red, orange, or yellow bell peppers, about 5 ounces each
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon merquén, or more to taste

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Shred the cheese on a box grater or with the shredding blade of a food processor. Use a grapefruit or paring knife to carefully cut around and remove the stem of each bell pepper. To avoid cutting into the flesh, use an iced tea or grapefruit spoon to scrape out the ribs and any seeds. Generously drizzle each pepper inside and out with olive oil. Sprinkle a pinch of merquén inside each pepper, then fill with equal amounts of the shredded cheese. Bake upright on a parchment-lined rimmed sheet pan or, if they won’t stand upright, in a muffin tin for 30 minutes or until the peppers are tender and the cheese is bubbly. Let cool slightly. Drizzle with olive oil right before eating.

Serves 4

Sweet Corn Gazpacho with Avocado Crema

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

This unusual twist on gazpacho takes advantage of tender sweet corn at its peak. As you’ll see from the recipe, we’re emphasizing corn’s gorgeous yellow color. When buying, look for ears with fresh stems (like cut flowers)—not brown or dessicated. Like flowers, you can recut the ends and store the ears upright in sugared water in a cool place for a day or two. Aji amarillo is a spicy yellow chile grown in South America. You can often buy it in paste form online or in the international aisle of larger supermarkets.

Ingredients

For the gazpacho:

  • 4 ears fresh sweet corn, husked, silk removed
  • 2 ripe yellow heirloom tomatoes, stemmed and coarsely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
  • 1 large yellow bell pepper, cored, seeded, and coarsely chopped
  • One 6-inch cucumber, peeled, seeded, and coarsely chopped
  • 2 teaspoons aji amarillo paste, or more to taste (optional; for heat)
  • Coarse salt (kosher or sea), to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric (optional; for color)
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
  • 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

For the avocado crema and for serving::

  • 2 small ripe avocados, peeled and pitted
  • 1/4 cup Mexican crema or sour cream
  • 1 clove garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
  • Juice of one lime, or more to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt, or more to taste
  • Yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Fresh cilantro leaves or minced fresh chives

Directions

Step 1

Make the gazpacho: If the corn is exquisitely fresh and tender, you can cut it off the cob (be sure to reserve the juices and 1/2 cup of kernels for serving) and add it directly to the food processor or blender without cooking it. Otherwise, you may want to blanch it in actively simmering water for a couple of minutes. To the corn, add the tomatoes, garlic, bell pepper, cucumber, and aji amarillo, if using. Process until smooth. If the machine needs liquid to get going, add a bit of vegetable broth or ice water. Add a teaspoon of salt, the turmeric, if using, and the vinegar. Slowly add the olive oil while the machine is running. Taste, adding more aji amarillo or salt, if desired. Cover and refrigerate the gazpacho.

Step 2

Make the avocado crema shortly before serving: In the bowl of a small food processor, combine the avocados, crema, garlic, lime juice, and salt. Process until smooth. Cover and refrigerate.

Step 3

Serve the gazpacho in your favorite glass or bowl; top with a smear of the avocado crema; a few cherry tomato halves and corn kernels; a drizzle of olive oil; and garnish with cilantro.

Serves 4 to 6

Ceviche de Porotos Negros (Black Bean Ceviche)

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

I enjoyed this dish at the wonderful Cervecería Rural in Litueche. It’s a salad of black beans (red kidney beans make a great alternative) dressed in the style of a ceviche marinade. Some versions have all the ingredients tossed together, but Rural’s chef presented it as a beautifully composed salad.

Ingredients

For the dressing:

  • 1 jalapeño, halved and seeded
  • 1 garlic clove, peeled
  • 1/4 cup fresh cilantro with some stems
  • 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • Coarse sea salt, to taste
  • Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the ceviche:

  • Two 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 red bell pepper, cored and seeded, cut into matchsticks
  • 1 green bell pepper, cored and seeded, cut into matchsticks
  • 1 small red onion, peeled and shaved on the slicing side of a box grater
  • 1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and cut into thin slices
  • 1 cup frisée or arugula
  • Kernels from one ear of freshly steamed corn
  • Extra virgin olive oil

Directions

Step 1

In a food processor, mince the jalapeño, garlic, and cilantro, then add the lime juice and olive oil and pulse until blended. Taste and season with salt and pepper as desired. Place the beans in a bowl and toss them with half the dressing; set aside for 30 minutes to marinate.

Step 2

When ready to serve, place equal amounts of the beans on 4 plates. Arrange these ingredients in a clockwise pattern over the beans: a few matchsticks of the bell peppers, a small mound of red onion, 3 to 4 slices of avocado, and a few leaves of frisée. Sprinkle a handful of corn kernels over each dish and then drizzle with the rest of the marinade and more olive oil.

Serves 4 as an appetizer