Smoked salmon & capers boursin - a recipe from Yummy December 2010

This is an appetizer dish I served for Noche Buena which I got from the pages of my favorite food mag Yummy (December 2010 issue). It's delicious, easy to make and can be prepared ahead. The original recipe called for it to be served with sliced pears, but I bought melba toast instead. Anyhoo, it makes no difference. What matters here is the dip itself

How to make:

mix softened one package of cream cheese and 1/2 cup heavy cream until smooth. Add the rest of the ingredients: 2 tbsps. chopped dill leaves, 1/4 cup finely chopped shallots, 2 tbsps. rinsed capers, 100 grams smoked salmon and sliced pears (optional).

Transfer the dip to a serving container and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Noche Buena 2010

Unlike last year when I was pregnant and feeling woozy, this time around I slaved over the kitchen for our Noche Buena 2010. In choosing the recipes I will make, I searched in the internet and local magazines. In the end, I settled for the following dishes. I wasn't able to make the shrimp bisque already!

Pineapple-glazed roasted spare ribs - trust on pineapple and its juice to make your dish flavorful in an instant. My kids devoured this

Slow-cooked salmon with creamy leeks and red wine butter - a recipe I found on Saveur:)

smoked salmon and capers boursin - appetizer served with melba toast. This turned out to be hubby's favorite.

Green papaya salad, Vietnamese version - a dish I learned to prepare at the Hanoi Cooking Centre

White Chocolate cheesecake - chef Aileen Anastacio recipe

The Noche Buena is what makes Christmas exciting. It's a prelude to the time when the family opens gifts. Holidays are hard to come by in my line of work and this year, my company declared Dec 24 a no working day. I was certainly happy and used the time to go grocery shopping and cooking. I don't know what Christmas will be like next year. Other people make this toxic season bearable by just ordering from restaurants and caterers. I might just do that too:)