Smoked salmon sandwich cake is the perfect make-ahead savory appetizer for any party or family gathering. It’s easy to make and fun to put together! Choose any garnish you like and turn it into a stunning centerpiece!
What is a sandwich cake?
This cake originated in Sweden (they call it smorgastarta) and is very popular in Nordic countries. Made for parties, birthday celebrations or any kind of get-together, Swedish sandwich cake is an appetizer made with bread and various savory fillings.
This recipe is for smoked salmon sandwich cake so fish is the main ingredient here. Now, if you are not a huge fish fan, you might try making ham or cheese one instead.
How to make sandwich cake with smoked salmon
First, it’s important to find a flat serving tray or something that you will assemble the cake on. Now, make sure that this tray will fit into your fridge.
I used a black slate with dimensions of 8×12 inch (20x30cm) and it was perfect for my smoked salmon sandwich cake. Especially because it did not use up much of a space in my fridge.
Next, we need to prepare fillings:
Salmon filling is a mixture of finely chopped smoked salmon, cream cheese, mayonnaise, fresh dill, lemon juice and seasoning. You only need to mix everything in a small bowl and you are done!
The egg filling is a mixture of finely chopped hard-boiled eggs, mayonnaise, fresh dill and seasoning. Again, mix everything by hand in a bowl and you are good to go!
Once you have prepped everything, we can assemble the smoked salmon sandwich cake.
Place 2 slices of bread onto the tray – next to each other. Spread over half of the salmon filling. When done, cover with two more slices of bread and spread half of the egg filling over. Repeat until you have used both fillings.
Now it’s time to cover the smoked salmon sandwich cake with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge. It needs to be refrigerated overnight so that the flavors have time to develop.
If you skipped this step, 2 things would happen:
- Your smoked salmon sandwich cake would be dry.
- You would have hard time spreading the top layer of cream cheese and mayo (this step is done just before adding garnishes).
Garnishes
The way you decorate your smoked salmon sandwich cake is entirely up to you. Here are some ideas for you:
- Cucumber
- Fresh Dill
- Smoked Salmon
- Fresh Chives
- Cherry Tomatoes
- Lemon Slices
- Hard-Boiled Eggs
- Caviar (or fake caviar, if you like)
- Radishes
A cheaper alternative to smoked salmon sandwich cake would be Tuna Sandwich Cake.
Other appetizers you might like:
Want to see how to make Smoked Salmon Sandwich Cake? Watch the video!
Smoked Salmon Sandwich Cake
Ingredients
- 8 Slices of Bread , see note 1
Salmon filling:
- 4 ounces Smoked Salmon , finely chopped (120g)
- ⅓ cup Cream Cheese (75g)
- ⅓ cup Mayonnaise (75g)
- Fresh Dill , finely chopped
- 1 tbsp Lemon Juice
- A pinch of Salt
- A pinch of black pepper
Egg filling:
- 3 Hard-Boiled Eggs , finely chopped
- ⅓ cup Mayonnaise (75g)
- Fresh Dill , finely chopped
- A pinch of Salt
- A pinch of black pepper
Top layer:
- ⅓ cup Cream Cheese (75g)
- ⅓ cup Mayonnaise (75g)
Garnish (see note 2)
- Cucumber
- Fresh Dill , a few sprigs
- Smoked Salmon
- Fresh Chives
- Cherry Tomatoes
- Lemon Slices
Instructions
Day 1:
- First, get a flat tray that can fit in your fridge. This is where you will assemble the sandwich cake.
- Next, make the smoked salmon filling: In a bowl, combine chopped salmon, cream cheese, mayonnaise, finely chopped fresh dill, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Mix everything well. Taste it. Add more seasoning, if needed. Set aside.
- Now, prepare the egg filling: In another bowl, combine chopped hard-boiled eggs, mayonnaise, fresh dill, salt and pepper. Mix everything well with a fork and give it a taste. Add more seasoning, if needed.
- Place 2 slices of bread onto the tray – next to each other. Spread over half of the salmon filling. When done, cover with two more slices of bread and spread half of the egg filling over. Repeat until you have used all the bread slices and both fillings.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Day 2:
- Mix the remaining cream cheese and mayonnaise and spread the whole cake (sides included) with the mixture (this should be a very thin layer – just to cover the cake). Prepare garnishes of your choice and decorate the cake to your liking (see note 2).
- Serve chilled.
Video
Notes
- I used crustless whole wheat bread but you can use white bread as well. Also, you can remove the crust yourself, if needed.
- Garnish the cake to your liking – you can use other garnish items like radish, eggs, caviar, chives, ….
- The overall prep time does not include the overnight-chilling.
Kate says
Wow this is a piece of art! It looks so delicious too, thanks for sharing!
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
You are welcome, Kate!
Traci says
What a cool idea! I love to serve salmon when entertaining but sometimes lack ideas…not anymore! So cute!
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
I am sure you will impress your guest with this salmon recipe :)
Dahn Boquist says
Wow this is a stunning appetizer. I love smoked salmon and it always gets gobbled up when I serve it at parties.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thanks, Dahn.
Lisa Huff says
OMG this is gorgeous! I just had to take a double look because wasn’t sure if it was a real cake or not. Love this idea! We just went to Alaska and loving all things salmon right now.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thank you, Lisa!
Matt Freund says
This looks delicious and different.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thanks, Matt!
Melissa says
Gorgeous photos, it’s too pretty to eat! I’ve not heard of anything like this before, thank you for sharing such an interesting recipe! I think we would love it!
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
You are welcome!