Gut healthy blinis

If you’re looking for ways to improve your diet, fermented foods can be a good start. Fermented foods are great for gut health due to the presence of probiotics, the beneficial bacteria that help you maintain a healthy balance of microorganisms in the gut. When foods ferment, these good bacteria multiply, creating an environment that supports digestive health.

Probiotics in fermented foods can help your health in several ways:

Improved Digestion: They assist in breaking down food and enhancing nutrient absorption, promoting smoother digestion.

Balanced Gut Microbiota: Probiotics help maintain a diverse and balanced gut microbiome, which is crucial for overall health.

Boosted Immunity: A significant portion of the body's immune system resides in the gut. Probiotics can strengthen this defence system, potentially reducing the risk of certain illnesses.

Reduced Inflammation: Some research suggests that probiotics may help reduce gut inflammation, which can be linked to various digestive issues.

Common fermented foods like sourdough, yogurt, kefir, kimchi, sauerkraut, miso, and kombucha contain live cultures of these beneficial bacteria, offering a natural source of probiotics.

While pancakes were traditionally a way to use up ingredients you didn’t want in the house during Lent, with a few tweaks you can make them a nourishing meal to enjoy any time of year. These blinis combine two gut-healthy fermented foods – sourdough and kefir – to give your gut microbiome a unique boost.

Sourdough is made by fermenting dough using wild yeast and lactobacilli bacteria, while kefir is a fermented milk drink made using kefir grains, which contain a combination of yeasts and bacteria.

When you combine sourdough starter with kefir, you introduce additional live cultures to the dough or batter, which contribute to a more robust fermentation process (more air bubbles), which could potentially improve the texture of the product.

By mixing kefir and sourdough the additional live cultures increase the nutritional profile of the blini, potentially enhancing its gut-health benefits, while delivering a delicious ‘sour’ flavour.

Making your own blinis also allows you to avoid the emulsifiers you typically find in ultra-processed foods, giving you control over the quality of what you are eating, and nixing some of the substances that can irritate a leaky gut.

An easy recipe for Gut Healthy Blinis

1 cup rye flour

1 cup kefir (or live yoghurt)

1 cup sourdough discard (excess sourdough starter)

½ cup water

2tsp bicarb of soda

1tsp salt

2x eggs (beaten)

Extra virgin olive oil or cold-pressed rapeseed oil for frying

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and beat until you have a thick batter. Cover and leave at room temperature for several hours (at least five) to allow fermentation to begin. The time you need to leave the batter will depend on the temperature of your room, and how deep a flavour you wish to achieve.

Heat a tbsp of oil in a skillet (frying pan) then gently dollop a ladle of batter into the centre of the pan. Allow the pancake to cook over a medium heat until air bubbles have risen across the surface and the underneath side is golden brown. Flip the pancake and cook the other side. Repeat until you have used all the batter.

While still warm, use a cookie cutter to cut out rounds at the desired size for your blinis if making canapés, or leave whole for a starter or main meal. Top with cream cheese, smoked fish, or roasted vegetables.

Keep the surrounding batter from the cut outs and return to the frying pan for another minute to crisp up. You can then serve these with fruit compote (maybe even leftover mince pie filling) and yoghurt for a dessert.

This recipe should make 4-6 large pancakes.