I mean, you can't blame me for incorporating cauliflower into a pancake recipe when cauliflower EVERYTHING is all the rage these days. Here it's a great way to keep things on the lighter side by using vegetables in a batter rather than all flour. The key though is using riced cauliflower, which you can easily DIY by pulsing florets in a food processor until rice-sized, or grating on a box grater, or simply purchasing pre-riced bags in the produce section of your grocery store if you so choose.
Smoked salmon is one of my favourite things, so that's how I top these savoury, chive-laced pancakes, but smoked trout or whitefish are also equally great options. As is often the case with my recipes, use what you like! To give a little shout-out to my gluten-free friends out there, I used a store-bought gluten-free flour blend, but all-purpose flour is perfectly fine if you don't need to avoid wheat. Make these cauliflower pancakes in full-size format as outlined below, or make smaller pancakes for a cocktail party canape. (Ps. I adore the word "canape")
Makes approx. 12 pancakes
Ingredients
Lemon-dill Sour Cream| 1/4 cup | sour cream |
| 1 Tbsp | fresh dill, finely chopped, plus more for garnish |
| zest of 1/2 lemon | |
| 1 | lemon, juice freshly squeezed |
| 2 | large eggs |
| 1/2 cup | milk |
| 1/4 tsp | cayenne (optional) |
| 1/4 tsp | onion powder |
| 1 tsp | sea salt |
| 6 turns | freshly cracked black pepper |
| 2 Tbsp | fresh chives, finely chopped, plus more to garnish |
| 4 cups | cauliflower rice (from approx. 1/2 head cauliflower) |
| 1/2 cup | gluten-free flour (or all-purpose) |
| olive or canola oil for frying pancakes | |
| 200g | smoked salmon |
| lemon wedges, for serving |
Directions
Lemon-dill Cream
- To a small bowl add all sauce ingredients and stir well to combine. Cover and refrigerate until service, up to 1 day in advance.
Cauliflower Pancakes
- Preheat oven to 200ºF. Line a baking tray with a wire rack or a layer of paper towels.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk together eggs, milk, cayenne, onion powder, salt, pepper, and chives. Stir in cauliflower rice and flour. Let batter sit 5-10 minutes to relax before cooking.
- Heat a cast-iron or non-stick pan, or a griddle over medium heat. Once heated add a thin layer of oil to the pan to evenly coat and spoon 1/4 cup batter per pancake, using the back of a spoon to flatten each slightly. Leave space around each for easy flipping. Cook 2-3 minutes per side until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer cooked pancakes to prepared baking sheet in preheated oven to hold warm until service.
Serving/Assembly
Arrange warm pancakes on a platter and top each with equal amounts of smoked salmon. Drizzle with lemon-dill cream sauce and garnish with dill and chives. Place lemon wedges around pancakes for easy grabbing, and serve immediately.
