I call this delicious appetizer Faux Foie Gras, not because it tastes like Foie Gras, but because it looks like it. It’s a lovely deep brown color, with cross-hatch slices on top and is creamy, smoky and sweet. The good thing about this faux foie gras is you don’t need to feel bad about it, regarding animal rights. The (possibly) bad news is you definitely need a smoker.

I first tasted this at Girl’s Weekend in the Keys at Kelley’s house. Our friend Peggy had brought it and her son, Hank, had smoked this for our annual get-together. She said he smoked it on his Traeger, a smoker I’d never heard of. Since Zeke’s electric smoker recently died, I thought it would be a perfect Father’s Day gift and Peggy told me they often go on sale. I bought Zeke a Traeger for a Father’s Day/Birthday Gift and the rest is history. He’s really enjoyed smoking things on it and I was excited to try and make this easy and delicious appetizer.

What this Faux Foie Gras actually is, is a smoked block of cream cheese. But that’s not all! You cross-hatch the cream cheese (it should be very cold from the refrigerator for best results), season it with your desired seasoning (Peggy’s son used a BBQ seasoning he’d got online), place it on a piece of heavy duty aluminum foil and put it in a 225 degree smoker on the top rack for one hour.

The top of the foil should be open to allow the smoke to reach the cheese. Remove it and serve on a plate or wooden cutting board, slathered with Hot Pepper Jelly and served with crackers. Peggy served it with Wheat Thins, I served it with Club Crackers and Triscuits, but it would also be good served with sliced French bread or bagel chips.

Hank used Stonewall Kitchen’s Hot Pepper Jelly, but I had some Strawberry Jalapeño Jelly someone had gifted me, so I used that and it worked beautifully. Hot Pepper Jelly can also be found at Farmer’s Markets, Country Stores and Craft Fairs. Or, of course, you could make your own. I made some Mango Habanero Jelly that I bet would be awesome on this smoked cream cheese, as the sweet and spicy tastes balance out the smokiness. This is a take on the very Southern and easy appetizer of Hot Pepper Jelly over cream cheese, but the smoking of the cream cheese takes it to another level! It will blow your mind.

Faux Foie Gras

Recipe by Traeger Grill Course: AppetizersCuisine: BarBQueDifficulty: Medium

Servings

6

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

1

hour 

Ingredients

• 1 block of full-fat cream cheese

• Barbecue rub or other seasoning

• Hot Pepper Jelly

• Crackers, bread or bagel chips

Directions

• Pre-heat smoker to 225 for 15 minutes. Use cherry or apple pellets.
• Unwrap cold cream cheese and season it with desired seasoning on the foil it came in.
• Score the top in a cross-hatch design with a sharp knife on the top.
  
• Place seasoned and scored cream cheese on a clean piece of heavy duty foil and place on the upper rack of your Traeger smoker, leaving the top open.
• Smoke for one hour. Remove from foil and plate.
  
• Pour hot pepper (or other preserves) over the top and serve with crackers, sliced bread or bagel chips.
  

Notes

• Use regular cream cheese (not low fat) for this recipe.
• If you are using a Traeger smoker, use apple or pecan pellets.

The Traeger recipe also suggested using different seasonings- like Lemon Pepper- or mixing add-ins into the cream cheese (bacon bits, nuts or herbs) and forming it into a log. This is one extra step, so I like the original recipe, but they also have a recipe for the cream cheese with black pepper ground onto it, with cherry preserves on top. Sounds like a winner!

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