Nigel Slater’s spring onion pancakes with crab and avocado

The recipe
Makes 8.

egg 1 large
milk 175ml
plain flour 50g
butter 40g, melted
spring onion 1

For the filling:
crabmeat (mixed white and brown) 350g
lime 1, squeezed
coriander leaves 3 tbsp
avocado 1
sprouted seeds such as broccoli or radish 100g
chilli jam

Make the pancakes. You will need a small, shallow non-stick pan – I use one 15cm in diameter – or use the centre of a larger one.Beat the egg in a medium-sized mixing bowl, add the milk, then the flour, whisking to a thin batter. Pour in a quarter of the butter, saving the remainder for cooking the pancakes, and set aside for an hour.

Remove and discard the roots and darkest green tips of the spring onion, then chop the rest finely. Stir into the batter.Warm a thin film of butter in the shallow pan over a moderate heat, then pour in one eighth of the mixture, tilting the pan from side to side to encourage a round pancake about 15cm in diameter. When the pancake is patchily golden on the underside, slide a palette knife underneath to loosen it from the pan, then carefully flip it over and cook the other side. Remove from the pan, lift out onto a plate then continue with the remaining mixture. You should make 8 small, thin pancakes. If you need, they will keep in good condition for a few hours, covered with clingfilm.

Put the crabmeat in a bowl and season lightly with black pepper. Halve and squeeze the lime, then add half of the juice to the crabmeat. Chop the coriander leaves and stir them in with a fork. Halve the avocado, remove the stone then cut the flesh into thick slices. (I use the remaining lime juice to stop it discolouring.)

Divide the sprouted seeds, crabmeat and avocado between the pancakes. Place a couple of teaspoons of chilli jam and a few coriander leaves on each.

Photograph by Jonathan Lovekin