Endive boats with smoked salmon

These can be prepared an hour in advance, placed on a platter and refrigerated. A microgreens garnish provides a welcome texture contrast as well as visual beauty; I buy an assortment of these colorful immature greens at Trader Joe’s.

Yield: About 24

INGREDIENTS

1⁄2 pound smoked salmon, slices or trimmings, coarsely chopped

1⁄2 cup whipped cream cheese

1⁄3 cup sour cream or crème fraiche

1⁄4 medium-size brown (yellow) onion, minced 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Salt and freshly ground pepper, white pepper preferred but not mandatory

24 large Belgian endive leaves

Optional: 1 1⁄2 tablespoons salmon roe, whitefish roe or red-orange tobiko (flying fish roe, sold in Japanese markets)

Garnish: Microgreens or alfalfa sprouts

DIRECTIONS

1: In a food processor, combine salmon, cream cheese, sour cream or crème fraiche, onion, juice and 1⁄4 teaspoon pepper. Process to combine until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides of work bowl as needed. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more pepper and salt if needed (often the salmon is salty enough that no salt is needed). Pulse again to mix. 2: Arrange endive leaves on platter. Spoon salmon mixture into pastry bag fitted with 1⁄4-inch star tip; pipe a generous “rosette” of salmon mousse on the wide end of each endive.

Or, if you prefer a more casual approach (that is perfectly fine), spoon about a tablespoon of salmon mousse onto the large ends of the endive leaves (using two dinnerware teaspoons is handy, using one as the scoop and the other to push it off).

3: If using, garnish each with a small amount of roe next to the salmon, about 1⁄4 teaspoon. Add a pinch of microgreens to each. Serve or refrigerate up to 1 hour.