Smoked Salmon Blinis
This Smoked Salmon Blinis recipe is for the sort of Christmas starter you can hand round while everyone settles in with a cold drink. The small pancakes have a little buckwheat flour for flavour, with soft folds of smoked salmon, lemony sour cream and fresh dill on top. They suit a hot South African Christmas beautifully: small, easy to eat and served without switching on the oven.
These are quick, baking-powder blinis rather than a yeast-raised version, so there is no long wait for the batter to rise. Cook them ahead, let them cool and keep the toppings chilled separately. Assemble a small platter just before serving, then replenish it from the fridge rather than leaving all the salmon out in the heat.
Ingredients
For the blinis
For the topping
Instructions
Make the blinis
- 1Whisk the cake flour, buckwheat flour, baking powder and salt together in a mixing bowl.
- 2In a jug, whisk the egg, milk and melted butter. Pour into the dry ingredients and stir gently until just combined. A few small lumps are fine. Leave the batter to rest for 10 minutes; it should fall from a spoon in a thick ribbon.
- 3Heat a large non-stick frying pan over medium-low heat. Brush lightly with some of the sunflower oil. Drop in level 15 ml spoonfuls of batter, leaving space between them; each should spread to roughly 5 cm across.
- 4Cook for about 2 minutes, until small bubbles appear and the edges begin to set. Turn gently and cook for another 1–2 minutes, until golden underneath and cooked through. Reduce the heat if they brown before the centres set.
- 5Transfer to a wire rack in a single layer. Repeat with the remaining batter, greasing the pan lightly between batches, to make approximately 24 blinis. Allow them to cool completely before topping.
Top and serve
- 1Mix the sour cream with the lemon zest, lemon juice, chopped dill and a little black pepper. Cover and refrigerate until needed.
- 2Shortly before serving, spoon a small dollop of the sour cream mixture onto each cooled blini. Add a loosely folded portion of smoked salmon and a small sprig of dill.
- 3Arrange on a cool serving platter and serve promptly. Keep any blinis awaiting serving, along with the remaining salmon and sour cream mixture, covered in the fridge.
Nutrition (per serving)
- Calories
- 180 kcal
- Carbohydrates
- 17 g
- Protein
- 9 g
- Fat
- 9 g
- Saturated fat
- 4 g
- Sugar
- 2 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
- Sodium
- 340 mg
- Cholesterol
- 54 mg
Estimated values based on the ingredients used.
Notes
Christmas tips
- Cook the blinis up to a day ahead. Cool completely, then refrigerate in an airtight container with baking paper between the layers.
- For longer preparation ahead, freeze the plain, cooled blinis for up to one month. Defrost overnight in the fridge and refresh briefly in a dry pan if needed, then cool before topping.
- Keep the salmon and sour cream at 5°C or colder. Serve small batches, and discard perishable toppings left out for more than two hours, or one hour when the temperature is above 32°C.
- Leave the salmon in its packaging until needed and follow its use-by date and storage instructions. Pat away excess surface moisture so the topping does not make the blinis soggy.
Frequently asked questions
Can I make these without buckwheat flour?
Yes. Replace the 50 g buckwheat flour with another 50 g cake flour. The blinis will be milder in flavour. If the rested batter is too thick to spread gently in the pan, stir in an extra 5–10 ml milk.
Should blinis be served hot or cold?
For this topping, use cooled blinis with chilled salmon and sour cream. Hot pancakes will soften the sour cream and warm the fish, which is not ideal for a summer platter.
How many blinis should I allow per person?
This recipe makes approximately 24 small blinis, enough for eight people at three each as a light starter. If they are the only snack being served before a late lunch, allow four to six per person and increase the recipe accordingly.
