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Financiers

Welcome back! 
Today, we have an interesting French cake: Financiers! Financiers have a couple of origins; some say it comes form the traditional gold bar-shape of the cake while others say it was popular among the financiers in Paris who worked what could be considered the French version of Wall Street. Whichever it is, there is no doubt about the interesting texture of this recipe! It's typically a little hard on the outside but soft and light on the inside. It also seems to harden when you chill it, changing the consistency considerably. It's something that really needs to be experiment with to find the perfect version!

Financiers


Makes 9 financiers (we have a Lekue 9-cavity mold)

Ingredients:

  • 60 grams powdered sugar
  • 30 grams almond flour
  • 30 grams cake flour
  • 1/8 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 large egg whites (about 60-65 grams)
  • 50 grams brown butter (this is essential for getting a good flavor)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon honey

Directions:

  1. Beat the egg whites a little so that it's smooth. It doesn't need to be frothy.
  2. Add the vanilla extract and honey into the egg mixture.
  3. Sift the cake flour, almond flour, baking powder, and sugar into a bowl.
  4. While mixing, slowly pour the egg white mixture into the bowl.
  5. Again, while mixing, slowly add the butter into the mixture.
  6. Pour the batter into the financier mold. If you're using a metal mold, grease the pan.

  7. Bake in the oven at 400° for 9-10 minutes.

There's a lot of different methods and variations to making this dish. If you want a more cake-like texture, you can beat the egg whites until foamy.

A couple good additions that we've tried are almond slices, which fit very well considering it's made with almond flour, and dried fruit. With almond slices, you can replace the vanilla extract with almond extract.

With dried fruit, you can add a teaspoon of liquor like Grand Marnier or cherry liquor.

However, keep in mind that this recipe is quite fickle; a little alteration in the recipe can really change the consistency of the financier. So keep that in mind, especially when adding stuff directly to the batter that isn't solid chunks like nuts or fruit. In fact, you should just put these toppings on the top of the financiers, not really mixed in.

-Chefpo
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