Asparagus Pancakes with Smoked Salmon

• buckwheat flour↗100 г g
• all-purpose flour↗100 г g
• baking soda↗½ ч. л. tsp
• plain kefir↗284 мл ml
• egg↗1

  beaten

• butter↗50 г g

  melted

• rapeseed oil↗2 ч. л. tsp

  or vegetable oil

• asparagus↗18

  cut in half to obtain 36 shorter stalks

• smoked salmon↗140 г g
• sour cream↗150 мл ml
• lemon↗кілька

  segments

Step-by-step instructions

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 120 °C (convection 100 °C, gas 1/2). In a large bowl combine buckwheat and wheat flour, baking soda and ½ tsp salt. In another bowl whisk kefir, egg and 3 tbsp melted butter, then gradually stir in the dry mixture to obtain a smooth batter.

2. 2

   Heat a non‑stick skillet over medium heat, add the remaining butter and rapeseed oil, then add the asparagus. Sauté, stirring, for 3‑4 minutes until it is almost tender.

3. 3

   Reduce the heat, remove all asparagus stalks leaving only six. Arrange them in the pan in two groups of three stalks. Using a ladle, pour a little batter onto each group, forming two round pancakes that hide the asparagus underneath. Cook until bubbles appear on the surface, 2‑3 minutes. Flip and cook another 1‑2 minutes until the pancakes are golden and set. Remove them and keep warm in the oven while you cook the remaining asparagus and batter to make about 10 more pancakes.

4. 4

   Place three pancakes on each plate, top with a portion of smoked salmon, serve with sour cream, a generous sprinkling of black pepper, and a few lemon wedges for squeezing.