Sexy salmon

Smoked salmon is one of my all-time best foods – definitely in the top ten of my desert-island favourites. I think it would take me a looooong time to get tired of eating it.
There's also something – I don't know – sexy about smoked salmon. Sensual. Maybe it's the colour. Maybe it's the texture... I think you know what I mean.

I did these recently for a Psychologies food shoot – they were easy to make, beautiful to look at and sublime to eat. Gosh-darnit just super. Ideal partytjie snacks. Deryck Verse took the pictures.

Rostis with smoked salmon and dill creme

Serves 6

200g potatoes
2 eggs, beaten
30g butter, melted
125ml crème fraiche
1 small bunch fresh dill, chopped
2tsp lemon juice
100g smoked salmon, sliced

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Grate the potatoes into a colander and squeeze out excess moisture with your hands.
In a bowl, combine the potato and egg and season to taste. Lightly grease 12 mini muffin trays and fill with spoonfuls of the potato mixture.
Pour some butter over each rosti and bake for 20 minutes or until golden.
For the dill cream, combine the crème fraiche, dill and lemon juice.
To serve, arrange the salmon slices on top of the rostis. Top with dill cream, garnish with sprigs of
dill and slivers of lemon.

These erotic hors d'oeuvre are best enjoyed with La Vie en Rose Cocktails:
In each flute, dissolve 1 sugar cube in 3 tablespoons rose water. Top up with rosé sparking wine and serve.