Valentine's Day Dinner & Cocktail Pairings: Herbed Smoked Salmon Mousse Croûte

So it's already February... can you believe it?  Time flies, especially when you lead a busy life, and I know most of us do.  One of the best things about this month, in my opinion, is Valentine's Day.  :-)  I know, guys everywhere just cringed.  But many of us ladies LOVE this holiday.  It's goofy, it's silly, but I like that about it.  It's an excuse to go out to dinner and get a little more dressed up than usual.  It's an excuse to tell your honey how much you love him or her.  It can also be an excuse to plan a special dinner to prepare together and enjoy right in the comfort of your own home. 

My Virtual Potluck group partnered up with Taste on the N8tion.com this month to bring you Valentine's Day menus complete with signature cocktails created just for us by Taste.  N8tion.com is a web television and radio network covering a wide variety of topics from music to entertainment to food and drink!  You can watch Taste every Thursday for free on n8tion.com. 



So Taste asked the members of Virtual Potluck  to each choose a course and they would pair our creations with a signature cocktail made just for us.  How fun!  Oh, and there are THREE Valentine's Day menus!  Check out last week's menu over at our host blog, Groovy Foody. 

So for this week's menu, I chose the appetizer course and since it was for Valentine's Day I thought I'd try to make it pink.  Pink is also my favorite color, so it works out nicely :-)  So I made a smoked salmon mousse and served it on a toasted croûte (crusty bread or baguette toasted with olive oil).  Taste created a drink to go along with it called the Brandy Squirt.  Here's the recipe:




Here's the Taste episode that shows how this drink is made as well as the other drinks created for this week's menu:




See how I made this mousse (it's really easy), after the jump!




In a medium glass bowl, cream together all but the salmon. 



Dice up the smoked salmon and add to the cream cheese mixture.  Transfer to a mixer bowl with a whisk attachment.






Using the whisk attachment on your mixer, whip the mixture together so it’s light and fluffy. 




Transfer the mixture to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and pop into the fridge until you’re ready for it. 




Make your croutes by drizzling the sliced bread with extra virgin olive oil, then popping them into a 425F degree oven. Bake the toasts until they are golden brown. 



Load a piping bag with a star tip with the cold salmon mousse. Pipe the mousse onto the croute, drizzle a little white truffle oil over the top and sprinkle some chopped fresh dill over the top. Serve with lemon wedges for a little tartness if desired. Pucker up!



See the rest of this week's Valentine's Day menu and cocktail pairings at our host blog, Groovy Foody.  And don't forget to check Groovy's blog next week for the third and final menu!

So what are YOU planning on doing this Valentine's Day?  Any special plans?  Share them in the comments below!  (...and keep it clean kids haha)