These smoked salmon appetizer crepe roll ups look elegant, taste amazing and can be made ahead of time. They are perfect for brunch, holiday gatherings or parties when you want something that looks fancy but does not require a lot of work in the kitchen.
This Recipe At a Glance
- Total time: 1 hour 20 min.
- Method: stove-top
- Servings: about 24 pieces
- Price per serving: $1.63
- Level: Medium
- Cuisine: French-inspired, European
- Great for: holiday party, New Year's Eve or Christmas appetizer, brunch or breakfast.
Jump to:
About This Smoked Salmon Appetizer
For New Year's Eve, I love serving festive bites that are easy to make and loos elegant. This year,in addition to my caviar canapes, I decided to make these crepes smoked salmon roll-ups. Tender crepes rolled with cream cheese and wrapped around smoked salmon make a festive appetizer, that is delicious and beautiful. I like to prepare my crepes a day ahead and store them in the fridge. On the day of the party, all that's left is to do is to assemble the roll-ups and serve.
Why This Recipe Works
- You can make these ahead of time for stress-free holiday preparation.
- The filling requires no cooking, which keeps the prep very quick and clean.
- My thin crepes are soft and flexible, so rolling them is very easy.
- Looks elegant and fancy but very easy and forgiving recipe.
- The recipe uses simple ingredients, you can find at any store.
- My detailed step-by-step instructions are great beginners
Ingredients You'll Need
You can find the ingredients quantities in the recipe card at the end of this post.
Crepes ingredients:
- Eggs: you will need 3 medium eggs.
- Oil: Oil is easier to work with for beginners, but you can use the same amount of melted butter instead.
- Flour: You will need all-purpose flour.
- Sugar: Only a little bit of sugar for taste.
- Milk: I used whole meal. Low fat milk also works.
- Salt: for balancing the taste.
Filling ingredients:
- Cream Cheese: I like to use plain creme cheese for this recipe. You can also use garlic and herb cream cheese.
- Smoked Salmon: A package of ready-to-eat thin sliced smoked salmon.
- Fresh dill: I use it to garnish the roll-ups.
Your Short Cut: I enjoy making crepes and always prefer homemade. But if you feel like making your own crepes, you can buy already premade crepes. I have seen them local at grocery stores, like, also at Walmart and Target at frozen section.
How to Make This Easy Smoked Salmon Appetizer
Below you can find detailed step-by-step directions on how to make thin crepes and use them to prepare this smoked salmon appetizer.
Making the crepes:
- In a large bowl. whisk eggs, oil, sugar, and salt. Add flour and whisk well.
- Gradually add warm or room temperature milk, one cup and a time, whisk until the batter is thin batter and free of lumps.
- Let crepe batter rest for 10 minutes.
- Cook crepes in a lightly greased pan, about 1 minute per side. Lightly grease pan only before cooking the first crepe.
Making the roll-ups:
- Cut a crepe in half and spread cream cheese.
- Starting from the round edge, roll the crepe into a tight, thin strip.
- Fatten the strip slightly on top.
- Lay a slice of smoked salmon along the length of rolled crepe strip.
- Roll the crepe strip with smoked salmon on top into a small pinwheel, keep it snug but not tight.
- Secure the roll-up with a tooth pick.
And if you want to make the most of your time, prepare a double batch of crepes to make sweet crepe roll-ups with Nutella for dessert, or split a single batch of crepes to make sweet and savory.
Optional Recipe Upgrade
If you want to take this appetizer to the next level, add a small scoop of red or black caviar on top of each piece before serving.
You can also add capers, micro greens and fresh herbs.
Serving
- As an appetizer: We love these smoked salmon roll-ups as a holiday appetizer for Christmas and New Years.
- As a part of brunch or breakfast: You can also serve them as part of your breakfast or brunch, along side eggs, bacon, pastries and coffee.
Tips for Success
- Use thin, large crepes for the cleanest rolls.
- Let the crepes completely cool down before adding the filling. Cover them with a second plate or foil while they cool down to ensure they are very flexible.
- Roll them tightly and chill for one hour before serving.
- Add delicate toppings before serving, such as micro greens, dill, lemon zest caviar.
Storage
Cooked crepes can be store in the fridge separately for up to 3 days. Once you assemble the appetizer, it is best to enjoy it withing 1-2 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can prepare the crepes up 2 two days in advance and store them separately in the fridge. Assemble the smoked salmon and crepes roll-up appetizer for up to 12 hours in advance and keep them chilled in the fridge. For best results, add any toppings like caviar, micro greens or herbs right before serving.
Crepes may look intimidating to make. But if you measure the ingredients right, use a good non-stick frying pan, you will see how easy and fun they are to make.
Instead of creme cheese, you can use creme fraiche, ricotta or other soft spreadable cheese.
More Crepe Recipes
- Red Velvet crepe cake - perfect for Valentines Day or Mother's Day.
- Crepe roll-ups with banana and Nutella - quick, fun and kid-approved dessert roll-ups filled with bananas and chocolate hazelnut spread.
- Apple crepes - a sweet twist made with shredded apples added to the crepe batter. Great for breakfast, snack or a sweet treat.
- Pumpkin crepes - my fall version of crepes, made with pumpkin puree batter and warm spices.
📖 Recipe
Smoked Salmon Appetizer Crepe Roll-ups with Cream Cheese
Equipment
- 1 large bowl
- 1 Whisk
- 1 Measuring Cup
- measuring spoons
- 1 10 inch crepe pan or a non-stick skillet
- 1 ladle
Ingredients
Crepes Ingredients
- 3 eggs ($1.55)
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil or melted butter ($0.30)
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar ($0.05)
- ¼ teaspoon salt ($0.01)
- 1¼ cup (160 grams) all-purpose flour ($0.18)
- 2 cups warm or room temperature milk ($0.50)
- oil for brushing the pan ($0.05)
Smoked Salmon Crepe Roll-ups Ingredients
- 16 ounces smoked salmon, sliced into 1-inch wide thin strips ($32.00)
- 12 cooked crepes ($2.64)
- 8 ounces cream cheese spread ($3.99)
- optional fresh dill for garnish ($0.50)
Instructions
Crepes Instructions
- In a large bowl, add eggs, oil, sugar and salt. Whisk well until combined. Add flour and whisk well into a thick paste with no lumps. 3 eggs, 3 tablespoons vegetable oil or melted butter, 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt, 1¼ cup (160 grams) all-purpose flour.
- Gradually add the milk, one cup at a time, while whisking the batter until there are no lumps. The crepe batter should be thin and pourable. You can also strain it through a mesh strainer to remove any remaining lumps. Let the batter rest at room temperature for 15-20 minutes. You can keep the prepared batter overnight in the fridge. 2 cups warm or room temperature milk
- Lightly grease a crepe pan or 10-inch non stick skillet with vegetable oil. Heat the pan over medium heat. Scoop about ½ ladle of batter (about ¼ cup) onto a hot pan, swirling it to form a circle. Cook over medium heat for about minute or until edges brown. Flip the crepe and cook for 1 more minute. Repeat the process with the rest of the batter, stacking cooked crepes in a large plate.
- Cover cooked crepes with a second plate and let them cool completely. You can also store them in the fridge for up to 3 days. Covering the crepes while they cool helps make them more flexible and tender for rolling. Note: this recipe makes about 12-13, each 10 inch in diameter.
Smoked Salmon Roll-ups Instructions
- Place one crepe on a flat surface. Cut the crepe in half. One crepe makes two pinwheels. Spread about 1 tablespoon of cream cheese on the half of the crepe. Starting with a round edge, roll it up into a tight thin strip. Flatten it a little bit after rolling. Lay a slice of thin smoked salmon along long the length of the rolled crepe strip. Roll the crepe and salmon together into a a pinwheel. Keep it snug but not too tight. Secure the pinwheel with a toothpick. Repeat the process with the rest of the ingredients
Comments
No Comments