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Buckwheat Blini

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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Yield 45 blini (9 servings)
Category Appetizer
Cuisine Russian
Author Lauren Grant

Description

These bite-sized buckwheat pancakes make the perfect appetizer or brunch meal. Keep it classic with smoked salmon and sour cream, or go sweet and serve these with butter and jam.

Ingredients

  • ½ cup buckwheat flour
  • ½ cup all-purpose flour *see gluten-free options below
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¾ cup buttermilk
  • ½ cup whole milk
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted and cooled, plus extra for cooking the blini

Instructions

  • Set a wire rack inside a baking sheet; set aside. 
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together buckwheat flour, all-purpose flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda; set aside. In a separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk, milk, egg, and melted butter. Whisk buttermilk mixture into four mixture just until combined and small pockets of dry flour remain.
  • Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat for 3 minutes. Add a small pat of butter (about 1 teaspoon) to skillet and swirl to coat. 
  • Spoon dollops of batter, scant 1 tablespoon each, evenly around skillet (about 6–8 pancakes at a time). 
  • Cook blini until large bubbles form on surface and bottoms are golden brown, 1½–2 minutes. Flip blini and cook until golden brown on second side, about 1½ minutes more.
  • Transfer blini to prepared sheet. Wipe skillet clean with paper towels. Continue to repeat the cooking process with additional butter and remaining batter, wiping skillet clean after each batch. 
  • Serve as desired (see instructions below for how to keep blini warm while cooking all of the blini—should you choose to serve them warm).

Notes

Flour: all-purpose flour works best here, but for a gluten-free version, feel free to use oat flour or a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend. If you use oat flour, increase the baking powder to 1 teaspoon.
Homemade Oat Flour: to make oat flour, process old-fashioned rolled oats in a food processor until a fine meal is formed. If needed, make sure the oats are certified gluten-free.
To keep the blini warm: place wire rack-lined baking sheet in a 200ºF (93ºC) oven. 
Make ahead: Blini can be frozen to for up to 1 week. To freeze the blini, let them cool to room temperature, then wrap in plastic wrap and transfer to a resealable zipper-lock bag; freeze. Thaw frozen blini in the refrigerator overnight, then arrange in an even layer on baking sheet, and warm in a 350ºF (176ºC) oven for about 5 minutes before serving. 
Adapted from America's Test Kitchen.

Nutrition

Serving: 5bliniCalories: 100kcalCarbohydrates: 13gProtein: 4gFat: 4gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 30mgSodium: 175mgFiber: 1gSugar: 3g
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