Buckwheat Blinis with House Made Gravlax

Serves 10 people

Ingredients

For the Blinis

2 cups warm milk
1 teaspoon yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup buckwheat flour
4 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

For the Gravlax

2 pounds fresh salmon, center cut
1 large bunch of dill, plus 1/4 cup chopped dill for serving
1/2 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons white peppercorns, crushed
1 tablespoon whole fennel

For the Garnish

Crème Fraiche
Chives, chopped
Caviar
Lemon juice to taste
Salt and pepper to taste

Special Equipment

Crepe pans

Instructions

For the Gravlax

Cut the salmon in half crosswise and place half the fish skin side down in a deep dish. Wash and shake dry the dill and place it on the fish. Combine the salt, sugar, crushed peppercorns, and fennel seeds in a small bowl and sprinkle it evenly over the piece of fish. Place the other half of salmon over the dill, skin side up.

Cover the dish with aluminum foil. Place a smaller pan on top of the foil and weight it with some heavy cans. Refrigerate the salmon for at least 2 and up to 3 days, turning it every 12 hours and basting it with the liquid that collects.

Lay each piece of salmon flat on a cutting board, remove the bunch of dill, and sprinkle the top with chopped dill. With a long thin slicing knife, slice the salmon in long thin slices as you would for smoked salmon

For the Blinis

Pour warm milk into a large bowl, then sprinkle yeast onto the milk, and allow to soften for 5 minutes. Stir in sugar and buckwheat flour; cover, and let rise for 1 hour.

Stir in the eggs, sour cream, heavy cream, salt, and flour until a batter forms. Cover again, and let rise for 2 hours.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Spray with cooking spray, then pour in small amounts of batter to form 1 1/2-inch blinis. Cook until the blinis begin to set and dry, and the bubbles begin to burst, about 2 minutes. Flip over, and continue cooking until browned on the other side, about 1 minute.