One of the best things about living up in Northern British Columbia are the long summer days filled with salmon fishing.
Ok, so this year I haven’t been salmon fishing (yet), but my husband has been all over it. A couple weeks ago he set out with some work buddies for a day long trip just off the coast of BC, to do a little deep-sea fishing. They brought home loads of fresh halibut and salmon.
My backyard was turned into an assembly line of fish cleaning, filleting, and deboning. I was ok with this as long as I didn’t have to get my hands dirty. My husband had big plans for the salmon…
Last summer my husband bought a smoker so we could enjoy our own freshly smoked salmon. He planned on smoking 75% of the salmon he caught, and let me keep the other 25% for cooking. Winning!
I’m not going to give you the recipe for smoking salmon, because I’m guessing most normal people do not own smokers. But rest assured, you can buy pre-smoked salmon at the grocery store and it’s just as good.
I will, however, give you an amazing recipe for a Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese Ball.
This amazing hunk of cheese is perfect for entertaining. Your guests won’t be able to keep their hands off of it.
The smoked salmon is mixed with a combination of cream cheese, shredded cheddar cheese, green onions, and a few amazing herbs and spices, then it’s rolled in chopped walnuts for the perfect crunch.
Want to know something strange?
My husband loves salmon but he doesn’t love it with lemon on it.
Who is this man?!
He actually really hates it with lemon… which means I’m always trying to come up with new ways to cook salmon without using lemon. I snuck a little bit of lemon juice in this cheese ball to help brighten up the flavors, and guess what?!?! … He still totally LOVED it.
Because seriously… who could resist a big ball of cheese with smoked salmon in it? Not me, and apparently, not him either.
You can serve this cheese ball with crackers (bagel crisps = amazing), or fresh cut veggies like cucumbers, celery sticks, or even sliced tomatoes.
Whether it’s football watching, baby showering, or office partying, you’re going to be the star of the party with this tasty Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese Ball.
So grab some crackers and dig in!
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Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese Ball
Ingredients
- 4 to 6 oz. smoked salmon, cut into small pieces
- 16 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 green onions, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp minced fresh dill
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
- salt and pepper
- 1 cup walnuts, finely chopped
Instructions
- Lay a large sheet of plastic wrap out on the counter out of the way.
- Combine all the ingredients except for the walnuts in a large bowl. Use clean hands to squish and mix the cream cheese and other ingredients together. Form the mixture into a large ball and place on top of the plastic wrap, then wrap up tightly. Place in fridge for at least 30 minutes.
- Place chopped walnuts in a large bowl and then roll the cream cheese ball into the walnuts, gently pressing until cream cheese ball is covered with the nuts. Place on a serving platter with crackers and cucumber slices if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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Rochelle
i would love to know the recipe for the smoked fish and the procedure on how you did this. We live in Canada and my husband brought home some arctic char. We have a smoker and are new to smoking so any tips would be wonderful!
Tami
Have you ever tried it with the tofutti cream cheese and almond milk cheddar cheese? I have just become lactose intelerant since gallbladder surgery and this cheese ball sounds amazing but I wonder if the substitutions will still taste ok.
Cas
We substituted with what we had on hand: half a yellow onion, some Real Lemon, and 1 Tbsp of dried dill weed (no S&P) and blended it in the mini chop to spread on crackers. Outstanding recipe thanks for sharing!
Shawn
Awesome! So glad you enjoyed it Cas! 🙂
Toni
I bought several smoked salmon packages at Tuesday Morning. They were priced at an unbelievable price and couldn’t pass them up. Got home with 5 and wasn’t sure how I was going to use them. Found this recipe and so glad I did. It is delicious and simple. Have served it to guests and it was a hit. Will make again and again.
Shawn
Sweet! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!!
SL
I use 1/4 tsp of liquid smoke since we don’t have a smoker.
Tammy
Just reading the title of this made my eyes pop. Excuse me while I go buy salmon. Thank you for sharing!
CAROL AT WILD GOOSE TEA
This would be uber popular in my family! It’s that time of year for appetizers too.
Anne-Marie
Hi! Great recipe but I live in the Netherlands and I’m therefor not familiar with old bay seasoning. Can you tell me the spices that go in the seasoning would love to try the recipe!
Shawn
Hi Anne-Marie, Old Bay Seasoning is a combination of several spices. I did a little searching for you and found a copycat recipe you could try. If you can’t find all the spices to go into it, you could always just use a cajun spice (for a little extra kick of heat). Here’s that copycat recipe:
http://leitesculinaria.com/81715/recipes-homemade-old-bay-seasoning-mix.html
Anne-Marie
Fantastic thank you! Getting all the spices won’t be a problem. Can’t wait to try it!!
Kristi @ Inspiration Kitchen
Shawn – amazing! I LOVE salmon & cream cheese dips, and I love that this Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese Ball is so perfect for entertaining. We are huge fans of Smoked Salmon, so I can see this would be a great recipe for a party! We have a smoker, but don’t use it nearly as much as I’d like us to!
Shawn
Thanks Kristi! You should totally bust out the smoker again. My husband makes the most AMAZING ribs in his smoker. I tried it once, but failed. I leave all the smoking to him now. lol.
Martha
Oh YUM ! That looks amazing. I can’t wait to try this. Thanks so much !
Shawn
Thanks Martha! 🙂 I hope you enjoy it!
Amy @Very Culinary
Oh me, oh my. Serves 10 my ass. I would eat that whole thing! And I’m so jealous of that smoker!
Shawn
Thanks Amy! And yes, it’s hard to control myself around this cheese ball, I would totally devour it all myself if left alone with it. 😉