{recipes!} Crème Fraiche + Whole Wheat Blinis

Surprise! Yes, I love caviar. It’s such a horrible addiction. I would eat it all the time but the last thing I need is a regular caviar bill. The most common question I hear is how to eat it and this is my thought. Eat it how you like it. People get so particular and over opinioned when it comes to foods like this. It’s like saying you have to eat chicken teriyaki style only. There are a hundred ways chicken rocks and it’s the same for caviar.

My personal favorite way to serve is with a dollop of either crème fraiche or sour cream. I’ll do sour cream if I have to, but I usually always whip up my own crème fraiche. I also like whole wheat blinis. If I’m serving with more flavorful caviar like Alaskan salmon, I like to fry the blinis in a touch of butter. If I’m serving with milder caviar like hackleback, I prefer to fry in a touch of olive oil so that the taste of the butter doesn’t compete with my caviar. In a pinch I’ll even butter or oil fry rounds of whole wheat bread. Then lastly, I do love a touch of either onion, shallot or chive.

If you are thinking of trying caviar but you just aren't sure if it is your thing, here are some things to think about. If you love seafood, most likely you will love this too. If you're into stronger tastes like salmon and smoked oysters, you are still going in the right direction. If you like sushi, this is for you. If any of the things I mentioned aren't your thing, especially uncooked sushi, you might not be really happy. The way I prep my caviar ends up blending together and tasting like a rich and creamy little fish appetizer.

>>> crème fraiche <<<

INGREDIENTS

1 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons buttermilk

DIRECTIONS

This is so easy. I like to mix my cream and buttermilk, cover and set aside for 12 hours. Then I take a whisk and bring the mixture to the consistency I like. I like it to be the same thickness of sour cream. It literally takes 1 minute of whisking. Then you can wrap it up and store it in the fridge for up to a week.

>>> whole wheat blinis <<<

INGREDIENTS

5 tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons 2% milk

2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

1 egg yolk

1 egg white

2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled slightly

Olive oil or butter for frying

DIRECTIONS

Mix the dry ingredients together in a non-reactive bowl. Add the milks and the egg yolk and whisk together. Then you’re going to beat the egg white until it holds soft peaks. Fold the egg whites and the cooled butter into the milk, yolk and dry ingredient mixture.

Then you are just going to heat a pan over medium low heat and either melt a touch of butter or add a little dash of olive oil for frying, depending on your taste likes. Then you are going to drop level tablespoons of batter to create your little blinis. This will create silver dollar sized blinis. If you like them smaller, you can even use a half tablespoon measuring spoon. That's my personal favorite size.

From there, it’s exactly like cooking a little pancake. When you see bubbles you flip and cook until cooked through. That’s it! I transfer my blinis onto a wire rack while I’m cooking up the entire batch. Whenever they are cooled, whatever you don’t eat you can store in an air tight container for a few days in the fridge.