Here’s an easy recipe to whip together for afternoon tea or a fancy high tea with the ladies. Financiers are light spongey French teacakes made with almond meal, icing sugar, butter and egg whites. Here in Australia we tend to make our Financiers or “Friands” in oval tins, but traditionally they’re prepared in little loaf tins where they resemble little gold bars.
These sweet & buttery soft cakes can be jazzed-up with a little fresh fruit such as sliced strawberries baked into their golden domes. A side of whipped cream or vanilla ice-cream is a refreshing antidote to the buttery goodness, but if you’re a sucker for sugar like I am, a dusting of icing mixture and a dollop of jam is pretty darn great but oh-so-sweet. You were warned!
FRIAND WITH JAM RECIPE
YOU WILL NEED
150g Almond Meal
90g Plain Flour
240g Icing Sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
8 Egg Whites
250g Unsalted Butter, melted
Strawberry Jam (or flavour of your choice)
Makes 12
DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 190 degrees celsius. Grease a 12-hole friand tray or muffin tray.
In a large bowl, add the almond meal, icing sugar, flour and baking powder. Slowly add the egg whites, whisking the mixture with a hand whisk as you go. Continue whisking as you add the melted butter until the mixture is just combined. Fill each hole with the batter until 3/4 full. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Leave friands to cool completely on a wire rack.
To serve, dust each friand with a little icing sugar and dollop with a heaped teaspoon of your favourite jam.
Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to three days.
(Adapted from The Bourke Street Bakery cookbook)
