Blinis

Blinis are extremely useful to have in your repertoire, especially when entertaining, because they provide a great foundation for a wide range of canapés.

Blinis are Russian pancakes, traditionally made with a mixture of wheat and buckwheat flour. The buckwheat brings a robustness and a hearty, nutty flavour which makes blinis a solidly savoury snack, unlike most other pancakes.

Ingredients

75g plain flour
75g buckwheat flour
1/3 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
175ml milk
1 egg
1 tsp oil

If you want to make the spinach blinis featured in the video, you’ll also need 100g raw spinach.

1. Place the spinach into a pan with a few tablespoons of water and bring to a simmer until the spinach has wilted
2. Strain, leave to cool and squeeze out any excess water
3. Blend with the oil and milk
4. Combine the flour with the baking powder and salt
5. Make a well in the center and crack the egg in, start whisking it in
6. Add the milk and spinach mixture, gradually and keep whisking
7. Heat vegetable oil in a pan and fry the batter in batches, until golden around the edges