CAVIAR & CORNCAKES

It’s been 25 years since Forest & Bluff made its debut in the community. Through the years, food trends have come and gone, but we’ve always sought to provide fresh inspiration for delicious, tested recipes with staying power. Among them, this recipe for fresh sweetcorn cakes topped with crème fraiche, caviar, and chives, is an enduring classic just right for fancy occasions. Truly a delicacy, pearls of caviar must be served very cold with accompaniments that enhance without overpowering the caviar flavor. In Russia, tiny pancakes made with buckwheat flour called blini are a favored platform. But we think these couldn’t-be-more-American little corncakes have even better flavor and texture. First popularized in the ‘80s by Anne Rosensweig at her Arcadia restaurant on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, the golden rounds are crisp on the edges and tender in the middle. Cornmeal provides the crunch; fresh sweet corn pureed with dairy and eggs makes for the creamy interior. Versions of Rosensweig’s original recipe have circulated ever since, with adaptations appearing in The New York Times, Epicurious, The Guardian, and elsewhere. Our recipe adds Middle Eastern labne (or you can substitute Greek yogurt) to the batter, echoing the flavor of that little dab of crème fraiche that goes on top of the finished cakes. Served with your choice of caviar or roe, and some fresh snipped chives these are delicious, it’s the ultimate way to celebrate Forest & Bluff’s silver anniversary.

MAKES 30 SILVER-DOLLAR-SIZED CORNCAKES 

INGREDIENTS

FOR CORNCAKES:
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• ½ cup medium grind organic cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon coconut palm sugar OR substitute 2 teaspoons cane sugar
• 2 cups fresh sweetcorn kernels cut off the cobb OR substitute thawed frozen sweet corn
• ½ cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup labneh (Middle Eastern strained yogurt) OR substitute thick Greek yogurt
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1 stick butter (1/2 cup) melted and divided into 2 quarter-cup portions
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter OR cooking spray

FOR TOPPING:
• Caviar or roe
• ¼ cup crème fraiche
• 1 small bunch fresh chives snipped to make ¼ cup
• Finely chopped hard-cooked egg, optional

INSTRUCTIONS

In a large bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and sugar. Set aside. In a deep cup, use an immersion (stick) blender to pulse 1 cup of the sweet corn kernels with the ½ cup of milk to make a rough puree with some chunks of corn unblended. Add the labneh and egg and pulse again to incorporate. Add this mixture to the dry ingredients in the bowl. Add ¼ cup of the melted butter. Stir until just combined.

In a skillet over medium heat, add the remaining ¼ cup of melted butter. Add the remaining 1 cup of sweet corn kernels and stir over the heat for a scant two minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Scoop this mixture into the batter. Stir just to combine.

Wipe out the skillet. Add the remaining tablespoon of butter OR spray with cooking spray. Heat pan over medium heat. Spoon small dollops of batter into the pan in silver-dollar-sized pools, making sure to leave space between each.

Cook 1 to 2 minutes until bubbles surface in each cake. Carefully flip cakes to brown the other sides. Remove to a lined plate and continue to make the rest of the cakes. Cool cakes for five minutes or more.

For service, top each cake with small dollop of crème fraiche, a tiny spoon of caviar and a sprinkling of snipped chive. Put out small bowls of iced caviar, extra crème fraiche, extra chives, and some chopped hard-cooked egg for those who want more.