Spring Onion and Gravlax Pancakes

Pancake day is one of my favourite days ever. I get so excited about it every single year! Even though I never do anything in particular for it, or cook anything fancy or special, I just adore this day. As far as I remember, it always falls on the first Tuesday of February, but in the past couple of years it has been pushed back to later in Feb with Easter being later too.

So two Tuesday's in Feb have passed and it's now Pancake Day again! I've no idea what we'll make later on, maybe just the usual simple batter and fill the pancakes with a mix of fruit, chocolate, honey, or the simple-but-still-delicious lemon and sugar. But already I've started pancake day with little fluffy spring onions pancakes and gravlax. It wasn't even planned!

We make gravlax quite often - we just love the stuff - and we have had quite a supply recently as I got a great deal on a kilo of salmon last week. Probably a bit too much salmon intake for two people over such a short space of time, but I'm not one to waste food, nor do I particularly like freezing fish. So, plenty of gravlax was made! My other half loves gravlax too, which is odd considering he really doesn't like smoked salmon. But after I gave it a go using a wonderful Nigella recipe a year or two ago, there was no turning back.

So with our stock of gravalax (which had significantly depleted after I spent most of the weekend out), spring onions growing well, and pancake day on the horizon, it just made sense to throw it all together! Check out the recipes below, hope you love it as much as we did :)

I'd love to hear what everyone else has made for pancake day! Any unusual recipes, or do you like to keep it simple?

Gravlax recipe

Spring onion pancakes and gravalax

Ingredients
400g (approx.) salmon fillets
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1 heaped tsp english mustard
4 tsp gin
A small bunch of chopped dill

Method

1. Mix the salt, sugar, mustard and gin together to form a paste
2. Smother the mixture all over the salmon fillets
3. Cover the salmon with the chopped dill all over
4. Wrap the salmon tightly in cling film
5. Store in a container in the fridge for approximately 4 days.

It's ready when the salmon turns a more deep pink colour and has firmed up. To serve, slice slithers of salmon thinly and top with a few drops of the liquid mixture.

Spring Onion Pancakes recipe

Spring onion pancakes

Makes approx 10 pancakes

Ingredients
100g plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
150ml milk
1 egg
25g melted butter
1 chopped spring onion
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Mix the flour and baking powder together in a bowl
2. Whisk in the egg and milk
3. Mix in the melted butter and chopped spring onion, adding salt and pepper to taste
4. In a non-stock pan on a medium heat, drop in approx. two tablespoons of mixture. Once the edges look cooked, flip over and cook on the other side.

The pancakes should be nice and fluffy.