Sweet Blini Recipes

SWEET BLINI

Steps:

• Make batter:
• Stir together yeast, 1 teaspoon sugar, and warm water in a small bowl and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. (If mixture doesn't foam, discard and start over with new yeast, sugar, and warm water.)
• Transfer yeast mixture to a blender and add flour, salt, milk, and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, then blend until combined. Pour into a bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Let stand in a warm, draft-free place until almost doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Return mixture to blender and add eggs and 2 tablespoons butter. Blend until smooth.
• Make blini:
• Lightly brush a 10-inch nonstick skillet with melted butter, then heat over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. Holding skillet off heat, pour in 1/3 cup batter, immediately tilting and rotating skillet to coat bottom. (If batter sets before skillet is coated, reduce heat slightly.) Return skillet to heat and cook crêpe until underside and edges are just set and golden, about 1 1/2 minutes. (Loosen edge of crêpe with a heatproof rubber spatula to check.) Flip crêpe over carefully with your fingertips. Cook until other side is golden, about 1 minute more. Transfer crêpe to a plate. Brush skillet with more melted butter and make 7 more crêpes in same manner, stacking them as made and brushing skillet between each crêpe.
• Purée preserves and lemon juice in a food processor until smooth. Spread 1/2 tablespoon preserves on a crêpe and fold in eighths to form a triangle. Repeat with remaining preserves and crêpes.
• Brush a 12-inch heavy skillet with remaining butter and arrange crêpes in 1 layer with points at center of skillet. Cook over moderate heat until crêpes are beginning to brown, 1 to 2 minutes, then flip crêpes over with a spatula and cook 1 minute more. Transfer to a platter and dust with confectioners sugar.

EASY BLINI (RUSSIAN PANCAKE)

Steps:

• Combine flour, salt, and baking powder in a bowl.
• Whisk 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk, egg, and 1 tablespoon melted butter together in a separate bowl. Mix into the flour mixture until the batter is fully combined.
• Heat 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Cooking several blini at a time, drop batter, one tablespoon at a time, onto the heated skillet. Cook until bubbles form, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Flip and continue cooking until brown, about 1 minute more. Move to a paper towel-lined plate to help soak up excess butter.
• Repeat with the remaining batter.

SWEET CORN BLINI

Steps:

• Put flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and sugar in a mixing bowl. Grind 1 cup corn kernels to a rough purée in a food processor, then add egg and yogurt, and pulse to mix. Add corn mixture to flour mixture and stir together until just mixed to make a thick batter. Stir in 4 tablespoons melted butter. Set aside for 5 minutes. Thin with a little milk if necessary. (Batter may be prepared several hours ahead.)
• Warm remaining 4 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add remaining 1 cup corn kernels. Season with salt and pepper, then cook for 1 minute or so to heat through. Keep warm.
• Put greased griddle or cast-iron pan over medium heat. Using 1 tablespoon batter, make pancakes about 2 1/2 inches in diameter. Cook for 1 minute, until bubbles appear on surface and pancakes are lightly browned. Flip and cook for 30 seconds more. (Be sure to keep heat moderate or else the pancakes will blacken.) Pancakes may be cooked in advance and reheated.
• To serve, place 3 hot pancakes on small plate. Top with spoonful of cooked corn and some of the butter from the pan. Drizzle with crème fraîche and sprinkle with chives.

SWEET POTATO BLINIS WITH CURED SALMON, CREME FRAICHE, AND CAVIAR

Steps:

• Place prepared sweet potatoes in a medium saucepan and cover with water. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, and cook until the potatoes are tender and can be mashed easily with a fork. Drain well and return to the saucepan. Add the honey and 4 tablespoons of the butter and mash until smooth. If possible, puree this mixture in food mill. In a small bowl, combine the milk and eggs and stir in the sweet potato puree. In another bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, salt and cayenne. Add the dry ingredients to the sweet potatoes and stir until just blended.
• Melt the remaining butter and reserve. Heat non-stick skillets over medium-heat and coat with some of melted butter. Drop sweet potato mixture into skillets in 1 1/2-tablespoon amounts. Turn once, cooking until golden and crisp, about 1 minute per side. Transfer to a large baking sheet. Repeat the process with the remaining butter and batter. The pancakes can stand at room temperature for 2 hours. Reheat in a 325 degree F. oven for 5 minutes before serving.
• To serve, arrange 3 blinis on a plate and garnish each with a slice of cured salmon, a dollop of creme fraiche and a small spoonful of caviar.

BLINI (RUSSIAN PANCAKES)

Steps:

• Beat together the milk and the eggs. Stir in the salt and the sugar and mix well. Add the baking soda and citric acid.
• Blend in the flour. Add the vegetable oil and pour in the boiling water, stirring constantly. The batter should be very thin, almost watery. Set the bowl aside and let it rest for 20 minutes.
• Melt a tablespoon of butter in a small frying pan over medium-high heat. Pick the pan up off the heat. Pour in a ladleful of batter while you rotate your wrist, tilting the pan so the batter makes a circle and coats the bottom. The blini should be very thin.
• Return the pan to the heat. Cook the blini for 90 seconds. Carefully lift up an edge of the blini to see if it's fully cooked: the edges will be golden and it should have brown spots on the surface. Flip the blini over and cook the other side for 1 minute.
• Transfer the blini to a plate lined with a clean kitchen towel. Continue cooking the blini, adding an additional tablespoon of butter to the pan after each 4 blini. Stack them on top of each other and cover with the kitchen towel to keep warm.
• Spread your favorite filling in the center of the blini, and fold three times to make a triangle shape. You can also fold up all 4 sides, like a small burrito.