Homemade Blue-Corn Blini with Maple-Chile-Braised Pork Belly & Cilantro

Instructions

Homemade Blue–Corn Blini

In a small pan, bring 1 cup lactose-free milk to a boil.

In a bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, salt, baking soda, and sugar. Pour milk over the cornmeal and stir together; set aside.

In a bowl whisk together the remaining ½ cup milk, egg, and butter; stir into the cornmeal mixture.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and cayenne. Stir into the wet ingredients until evenly combined.

Drop 2 tablespoon scoops of batter onto a preheated, buttered griddle. Cook for 1minute until the first side is golden brown and cooked through. Turn and cook onthe second side. Repeat with remaining batter.

Note:

*Serve these as appetizers topped with a pinch of Maple-Chile-Braised PorkTenderloin, a squeeze of lime, and chopped fresh cilantro. Or, cook the batter into regular-sized pancakes and finish with butter and syrup.

*You may substitute yellow or white cornmeal for the blue cornmeal.

*Blini batter is best without lumps. Try using an electric mixer to smooth it completely.

Maple-Chile-Braised Pork Tenderloin

Preheat the oven to 300°F. Cut the pork tenderloin into large cubes and season withsalt and pepper. Place in a roasting pan.

Halve the head of garlic horizontally to expose the cloves and toast in a dry sautépan with the chiles. Toast over high heat for 1 to 2 minutes, until fragrant. Add the maple syrup and cook 3 minutes for the flavors to combine. Pour over the pork and cover.              

Place in the oven and cook for 1¾ to 2 hours. Remove the garlic and chiles from thecooking liquid and cool. Shred the pork with two forks.

Note:

*Serve forkfuls of pork on Blue-Corn Blinis, finished with a squeeze of lime and some chopped cilantro. Make entrée portions by making the blinis into the size oftraditional pancakes, layering the pork in between layers of pancakes, and finishing with a fried egg on top.

*Keep the pork from being too sweet by using dark amber maple syrup. It is richer in flavor without the additional sweetness.