In the last week of February, 2009, Russia celebrates Maslenitsa. Shop counters in towns across the country groan under samovars of mellow tea. Bunches of sweet-smelling barankas, along with pies, nuts, fish, caviar and various salted foods are on display. Traditional horse-drawn sleds carry people through snowy streets populated by characters from Russian fairytales, while actors put on open-air plays. Fireworks displays, dancing and folk songs lead up to a finale in which the scarecrow of winter is put to the torch to… mark the end of the harsh winter and the beginning of spring. The star attraction is the blini. As part of the week's events, there is even a contest to create the world's largest blini. So why not celebrate the approach of spring with a blini evening based on Russia's oldest folk traditions? Symbolizing the sun (round, golden and warm), blinis are eaten with sour cream and caviar or honey and jam and washed down with plenty of vodka→