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partnered with warm salted caramel sauce and bananas, are hard to resist. Equally tempting is French toast, soaked in eggnog, baked in the oven, and then crowned with glazed cranberries and apples. These dishes are all easy and impressive at the same time.
    Nestled among these favorites is a recipe for blini—those savory little Russian pancakes served with toppings of sour cream, caviar, and smoked fish. Bite-size and addictive, they are best served as appetizers, rather than as a main course like their sweet counterparts.
    Savory or sweet, griddled fare is a universal crowd-pleaser. One little caveat applies: Make more rather than less. I’ve seen platters of pancakes and waffles disappear in minutes. People seem to eat with abandon, reaching for seconds and even thirds when the food is hot off the griddle.

10-Minute Blini
    Classic Russian blini are prepared with buckwheat flour and yeast. In this version, whole-wheat flour replaces the heavy and strongly flavored buckwheat, while baking powder stands in for the yeast. By eliminating the yeast, the batter takes only about 10 minutes to put together. Sour cream and caviar are timeless toppings for these savory little pancakes, but other garnishes such as smoked salmon or trout, red onions, and lemon zest are just as delectable. These bite-size griddle cakes are blank canvases awaiting your artistic expression and make mouthwatering openers for a brunch.
    Makes 12 blini, to serve 4
    PREP TIME:
    10 minutes
    START-TO-FINISH TIME:
    20 minutes
    MAKE AHEAD:
    No
½ cup/85 g whole-wheat flour
3/8 tsp baking powder
⅛ tsp baking soda
⅛ tsp salt
⅓ cup/75 ml sour cream
¾ cup/60 ml whole milk
1 egg
2 to 3 tbsp unsalted butter, plus more if needed
    Toppings
Sour cream and caviar (either black or red)
Thinly sliced smoked salmon, finely chopped red onion, sour cream, a sprinkle of lemon zest, and several grinds of black pepper
Watercress sprig, thinly sliced apple, flaked smoked trout, sour cream mixed with a little horseradish, and a sprinkle of fleur de sel
1. Arrange a rack at center position and preheat the oven to 200 degrees F/95 degrees C. Have ready a baking sheet.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another medium bowl, whisk together the sour cream, milk, and egg until just blended. Gradually pour the sour cream mixture into the dry ingredients, whisking until the mixture is thick and smooth.
3. Place a large, heavy frying pan or griddle over medium-low heat and add enough butter to coat the bottom of the pan. When the butter is hot but not smoking, add the batter in level tablespoonfuls. Add just enough to fit comfortably in the pan, and cook until the blini are golden brown on the bottom, 1 ½ to 2 minutes. Turn and cook until golden brown on the other side, 1 ½ to 2 minutes more. Remove to the baking sheet and place in the oven to keep warm. Repeat, adding more butter to the pan as needed until all the batter has been used.
4. Arrange the blini on a serving plate, garnish with any of the suggested toppings, and serve.

Spiced Pancakes with Warm Maple-Butter Syrup
    Made with a classic batter of flour, eggs, sugar, and butter that is enhanced by a quartet of fragrant spices, these golden pancakes are topped with a drizzle of Warm Maple-Butter Syrup. The recipe yields four servings, but can be easily doubled. The delectable syrup can be prepared ahead and the dry ingredients combined in advance, so that last-minute prep is kept to a minimum.
    Makes 12 pancakes, to serve 4
    PREP TIME:
    15 minutes, including making the Warm Maple-Butter Syrup
    START-TO-FINISH TIME:
    25 minutes
    MAKE AHEAD:
    Partially
    Warm Maple-Butter Syrup
6 tbsp/85 g unsalted butter, diced
6 tbsp/90 ml maple syrup
    Pancakes
1 ½ cups/175 g all-purpose flour
3 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp salt
⅛ tsp ground cloves
⅛ tsp freshly ground nutmeg
1 cup/240 ml whole milk
3 eggs, beaten
4 tbsp/55 g