Buckwheat Pancakes (Blinis)

You know what’s the best part of being a food blogger? You meet so many like-minded people. It’s only with them that you can whine about not finding cacao nibs where you live, or figure out why you’re having a bad photo day, or wonder why your yeast isn’t bubbling up already. A place that is especially good for such rants is Twitter.

One such day I tweeted about my curiosity about buckwheat because it’s really hard for me to find it here. In response to that, I had a package waiting for me at home with the aforementioned buckwheat and basil seeds and saplings (again, she heard me cry about how my plant almost died when I went to Goa). Who is this kind person, you’re thinking? It’s vindee from Passionate about Baking!

As soon as I got my hands on the package I made sure I put the precious little saplings in the soil and scattered some seeds in another pot as I thought about what I’d make with some “exotic” buckwheat. Just as I was looking through The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters a recipe for buckwheat pancakes stared at me in my face. I’ve never made yeast pancakes before so this would be fun, I thought. But what I was more excited about was that this needs to be made with egg whites folded in; and this is a pancake making method I’ve been meaning to try for a while.

I absolutely loved how fluffy the pancakes turned out to be with the folded egg whites. I’m going to do this for my pancakes henceforth. Also, it’s best to keep the batter ready a day before so that these can be made without any fuss the next morning doused in butter and your favourite jam.

1. In a small bowl mix together the yeast and milk. If you are confident of your yeast, you don’t need to wait. But if you’re like me, and are only satisfied when you see the yeast bubble up with your own eyes, then wait and watch. Next, mix this up with the two egg yolks.
2. In a large bowl stir together 25g buckwheat flour, 25g all purpose flour and sugar. Stir in the wet ingredients until well mixed. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume. (This is called a sponge).
3. Now add the remaining buckwheat and all purpose flour along with the 6 tablespoons of milk to the sponge. Mix well. Let this rise for another hour.(You can let it rise for 4-5 hours at a cool room temperature). Stir in the vanilla extract.
4. When you want to fry the blinis, whisk the egg white until soft peaks are formed. Fold this into the batter until well incorporated.
5. Drop the batter by the spoonful on a lightly buttered griddle and let it cook until the corners start drying up. Flip over and cook for another minute or two.
6. Serve warm with a good knob of butter and your favourite jam.