When a loved one makes you pancakes—well, what’s sweeter than that? My dad made them for my mom most Sundays, from a packaged mix but she didn’t care. She got to lounge in bed with the papers.

My recent post on the cottage cheese trend elicited a cottage cheese pancake recipe from a reader, who told me it was a family favorite. When I made them, my husband joked that you had to put your hand on them to keep them from floating. They are indeed fluffy. I think they would make a wonderful Valentine’s Day breakfast, but for those who prefer to celebrate at dinner, I’m reprising Margrit Mondavi’s delicious recipe for buckwheat blini with crème fraîche and smoked salmon.

Melt-in-Your-Mouth Cottage Cheese Pancakes

If you like, sprinkle blueberries on top of each pancake before flipping. Planet Cheese reader Nancy Calle shared this recipe, a family favorite. The vanilla is my addition.

• 4 room-temperature large eggs, separated

• 1 cup small-curd cottage cheese

• 1 cup sour cream

• 1 tablespoon sugar

• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

• ¾ cup sifted unbleached flour

• ¾ teaspoon baking powder

• ½ teaspoon kosher or sea salt

• Melted butter (preferably clarified butter or ghee) for the griddle

• Maple syrup or blueberry sauce for serving

In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks until creamy. Whisk in the cottage cheese, sour cream, sugar and vanilla.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir into the cheese mixture.

In a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites to firm peaks. Fold gently into the cheese mixture.

Preheat a griddle to medium. Brush with melted butter and cook pancakes of any size.
Makes about 18 three-inch pancakes.

Margrit Mondavi’s Buckwheat Blini

Adapted from Margrit Mondavi’s Vignettes
by Margrit Biever Mondavi with Janet Fletcher.

Make the blini any size you like.

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

• 1/4 cup buckwheat flour

• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

• 1 large egg, beaten

• 1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons milk, or more if needed

• 2 tablespoons clarified butter, or more if needed, melted

• 6 to 8 ounces smoked salmon or smoked trout

• 1/3 cup labneh, crème fraîche or sour cream

• Fresh dill or thinly sliced chives for garnish

In a bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, buckwheat flour, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, whisk together the egg and milk. Add the dry ingredients to the liquid ingredients and whisk well to blend. The batter should be thinner than pancake batter. Transfer it to a container with a pour spout.

Heat a griddle or nonstick skillet over medium heat. If using a skillet, be sure it rests level on the burner. When hot, brush lightly with melted butter. Carefully pour enough batter onto the griddle to spread into a 2-inch circle (or any size you like). Cook until bubbles appear on the surface and the blini begin to brown lightly around the edges, about 45 seconds. Turn with an offset spatula and cook on the second side until done, about 45 seconds. Taste the first one or two and adjust the heat or timing as needed.

Transfer the first batch of blini to a serving platter. Brush with melted butter. Top while hot with a piece of smoked salmon, a dollop of labneh and a sprig of dill or sprinkle of chives. Serve immediately. Repeat until you have used all the batter.
Makes about 32 two-inch blini