ChefSteps is a team of chefs, writers, and food lovers who develop recipes, techniques, and guides to help people cook better at home.

ChefSteps

Our version of the traditional Russian snack is a tiny, one-bite pancake loaded with buckwheat flavor and softened with Yukon Gold potatoes and crème fraîche. We love to top these blini with savory ingredients like <a href="/recipes/blini">beets and caviar</a> for a delicate amuse-bouche, but the possibilities are pretty much endless. Serve them with jam and maple syrup for brunch; top them with smoked salmon and dill for lunch; or spread Nutella on them for dessert.Traditionally, blini are Russian pancakes made from buckwheat flour leavened with yeast and lightened with beaten egg white and whipped cream. They’re often made individually in small cast iron pans and served with caviar and sour cream. Though your babushka’s blini may have looked more like a crepe folded into quarters, we liked the idea of creating a more refined, bite-sized version. Riffing on the traditional version, ChefSteps Development Chef Nick Gavin came up with a recipe that incorporates Yukon Gold potatoes, buckwheat flour, and crème fraîche for a soft, springy pancake that holds up well under delicious toppings.At ChefSteps, we hadn’t yet tapped into Eastern European cuisine, and we thought blini would be a great place to start. We used a few different recipes for inspiration, including ChefSteps’s own Michael Natkin’s <a href="https://www.herbivoracious.com/buckwheat-buttermilk-pancakes-recipe/">Buckwheat-Buttermilk Pancake</a> and Thomas Keller’s Potato Blini recipe. The result is an incredibly soft blini with all the traditional buckwheat flavor and a nice, springy bite.