Every country has their own traditional dishes for the holidays, and Lord knows France is obsessed with food traditions. I remember that first Christmas we spent at the château, when Nicole gave me an assigned dish for the big fête for Noel. A French holiday meal always begins with oysters or smoked salmon or foie gras (sometimes all of the above), and I was to bring the salmon.
Wanting to get it right, I did some checking. I chose Scottish smoked salmon, since a friend advised me that it’s the best. The salmon must be served on little round pancakes called blinis, and alongside it, crème fraîche, wedges of lemon, and capers.
Now you could serve this salmon with crackers or sliced baguettes, and it would be mighty fine. But these little pancakes make it special. The blinis are often made with buckwheat flour, but white flour is used as well.
In France there’s no need to make your own blinis; you will see them in every supermarché around the holidays. But what’s easier than a pancake to make? Put some fresh herbs in the batter, and they’re even better. I like to serve them with lime wedges instead of lemon, and a garnish of dill, chives, or parsley.
So, my Christmas gift to you, dear readers, is this elegant little French recipe. In France it’s a first course but it also works as a light lunch, as an easy nibble for holiday guests, or as a brunch dish. And of course you don’t have to stop with salmon. These babies are good topped with lots of things. Smear them with avocado and a slice of red onion, or top them with chopped barbecued pork and sour cream, with shrimp and remoulade sauce, or whatever sounds good to you. We're in Georgia for Christmas this year, and I made them almost French, but I took the liberty of substituting smoked trout for the salmon.
Oh my, another year gone by! Thanks for staying with us at Southern Fried French. I’d like to wish each one of you the happiest of holidays and a terrific new year!
RECIPE: Blinis with Smoked Salmon (French) or Smoked Trout (southern)
Blinis are small pancakes, about as big around as a cracker. They’e not thin like a French crepe, but instead resemble a mini version of an American pancake.
- 1 cup (150g) flour
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 2⁄3 cup (180ml) milk
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons (25g) melted unsalted butter (plus another tablespoon for the pan)
- 1 tablespoons finely chopped chives, dill, parsley or basil
- 4 slices smoked salmon or smoked trout, cut into strips
- 1/3 cup sour cream or crème fraîche
- 2 limes, cut into wedges
- Finely chopped fresh herbs for garnish
- capers (optional)
Melt butter and set aside to cool slightly. Add flour, sugar, baking powder and salt to a bowl and whisk well. Whisk milk and egg together well, stir in butter, and stir the mixture gradually into the flour mixture. If you have time, refrigerate the batter while you drink your first mimosa or glass of wine.
Melt remaining tablespoon of butter. Heat a black skillet over medium-high heat. Lightly brush the pan with a little butter. Drop spoonfuls of blini mixture into pan to make small pancakes. Cook until bubbles start to show and they are golden brown underneath; flip them and cook another 30 seconds or until browned lightly underneath. Repeat with remaining butter and blini mixture.
To serve, top blinis with the fish, crème fraiche, slices of lime, and capers if desired. You can assemble them and pass them on a tray, but if it’s a small group I like to arrange the ingredients on a platter. The blinis freeze well.
A miscellaneous cooking tip: Do you ever get confused when measuring butter? Recipes call for butter in grams, ounces, tablespoons, cups, or sticks—It can get your head spinning. I could not live without my handy Butter Measurement Translation Chart to Defeat Nefarious Recipe Writers, which I printed out and pinned to the inside of a kitchen cabinet. Problem solved!
13 thoughts on “A French Holiday Tradition Worth Adopting”
Happy holidays to you! We have often served this on Christmas Eve (not homemade blinis) but this year we broke with tradition and I made “verrines” with smoked salmon, cucumber and a creamy herb sauce. It was delicious and a bit lighter than the blini version.
Nice reminder of something even I can make. I might try using The Fresh Market buttermilk pancake mix to make it 10 seconds faster. This will be wonderful for New Years and even my grandson will like it with the salmon! Thanks for something super easy and festive at this busy time of year.
Happy New Year to you both!
Ellen
Merry Christmas! Thank you for sharing. I so enjoy your blog Lynn. Glad you are here for a visit! Enjoy! 😉
Joyeux Noel and a truly happy New Year to you and your family Lynn. You have such a talent for making cooking fun and easier for all of your readers! Your bilinis sounded fabulous, bien sur!
Happy New Year to you and your family. Thanks so much for the brilliant butter converter. I don’t bake as you do–except for bread. But this should come in handy when using all the French recipes I’ve gathered over the years.
I prefer the Norwegian salmon. I’m interested in your assessment of the Scottish salmon. Chaque a son goût, ein? Either way, I love it all!
Chris
Happy holidays, Lynn! All the best for 2015!
And, I love your suggestion about letting the batter rest while enjoying an adult beverage. Brilliant!
Had these for breakfast on our trip to France earlier this year….YUM!!! Thanks for sharing the recipe 🙂 Love your blog, Lynn!
Lynn, this sounds absolutely wonderful!Especially appreciate a good blini recipe as the pre made ones I got at the store were a poor substitute.Also appreciate some yummy ideas other than the usual caviar one.(Not a caviar fan,nor a fan of the mess those little eggs
can make if they fall off onto the floor)
THANK YOU!!!!!!
Bonne L’annee to you and yours!
So pleased to be a member of the extended SFF family and look forward to another year of your wonderful posts and pictures!
Oh my this looks divine, healthy & quite easy to make. Thank you for sharing this!
Merry Christmas Lynn & a Happy New 2015 to arrive soon! X
Thanks for another great year of posts! I enjoy your stories and recipes and plan to try this one. All the best in 2015!
Thank you for the great recipe! I hope you have an amazing time in Georgia.
Wishing you & your family the best for 2015!
Hugs
Ido
Happy New Year, Lynn! Looking forward to your posts in 2015.
Thank you for this wonderful recipe. I made it last night for an engagement party and it was devoured. My new favorite go to party dish.