Roasted Smoky Salmon Bagels

These open faced bagel sammies have all of the delicious things that you’d find in your traditional bagel and lox situation. But for those of you out there like me that can’t stand the texture of smoked salmon or for those of you that can’t eat smoked salmon, I have the solution! We’re going season some salmon filets with sweet and smoky flavors and roast (actually broil) them until they’re perfectly succulent and delicious.

Doesn’t that sound like the best plan ever!

Let’s talk salmon. We’re going to start by making a quick little rub for our salmon. This salmon is not going to taste like traditional smoked salmon. But, we’re going to impart some smoky flavors into the meat by using a little smoked sea salt and a little smoked paprika. We’ll brush our salmon with a layer of maple syrup, rub our spices into the flesh of our fish, pop it in the oven, let it cook, and the salmon is done!

Now once the salmon is finished cooking, we’re going to let it cool down to room temperature, and break it off into bite sized hunks. So, this is the perfect opportunity to use those “ugly” pieces of salmon. You know what I’m talking about. There’s the thick, beautiful pieces and there’s the flatter, wider pieces. Since we’re breaking the salmon up anyway, use those “less presentable” pieces of salmon if you have them! Just watch your cook time, because thinner pieces will obviously cook faster.

While the salmon is roasting, we’ll prepare the rest of our toppings. For our schmear, we’re going to make the easiest, herbiest cream cheese. All we need is some whipped cream cheese, some fresh minced chives, and some fresh minced dill. Mix it together, and let it sit while you prep everything else to help those flavors marry together a little bit.

For our supporting flavors, the world is our oyster! For the baseline recipe, I chose to top my bagels with some really thinly sliced cucumber, some red onion, and some capers along with my herb cream cheese and smoky salmon. On one occasion, I added a little avocado and it was delicious. You could also add some thinly sliced tomatoes to the party here too. Top the whole stack with more fresh herbs if that’s how you’re feeling, and we’re pretty much ready to eat.

As important as all of our toppings are, our bagel is equally as important. A plain old freezer bagel isn’t going to quite cut it here. I mean, it will. But, you’ll be soooo much happier if you get one of those big, freshly made bakery bagels from a local store. I chose to use sesame bagels, because I really just love the natural nuttiness of a sesame bagel. But if you want to jazz these up even more, an everything bagel would taste pretty delicious here too. We’re going to toast them just enough to give them a little color, then we’ll pile on all of our glorious toppings.

These bagels…wow. They are a hearty bite! The bagels are the perfect balance of soft and crunchy. The herb cream cheese is so vibrant and fresh. The salmon is a little sweet from the maple, a little smoky from the spices, and perfectly juicy thanks to that quick oven roast. Then, all of our toppings are just icing on the salmon cake. The capers are acidic, the cucumbers are light, the red onion is sharp…everything together makes one absolutely perfect bite!

Ok, everyone! We solved a big problem for me today by figuring out how to have salmon and lox without using icky smoked salmon. What problem should we solve for you next??

I hope you guys enjoy this recipe as much as I do. Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram if you make it!

Let’s eat!