Patisserie 46 Financiers

-By Stephanie Meyer-
-Photos by Susan Powers-

To quote Susan from a Tweet she sent out after our shoot, “Please mention how incredibly addicting the recipe was today….still dreaming about them.” I think that nicely sums up the consensus on these lovely, lovely little cakes.

The secret to financiers’ addictive flavor is beurre noisette, or browned butter. If you’ve never browned butter before, oh my goodness, you are in for such a treat. This is a bit of an aside, but browned butter is delicious with absolutely everything – think scrambled eggs, asparagus, your finger…

…and cake batter! The flavor is nutty and rich, enhanced by the bit of almond meal also in the batter. Despite only egg whites (no yolks), the cakes are moist and rich. They’re also a breeze to pull together – the only think-ahead moment is to stir everything together the night before so the batter can cure.

Financier pans can be found in specialty kitchen shops and online, but I just baked these in a mini-muffin tin, which worked beautifully. Fill the tins only half full as the cakes rise quite a bit.  Serve the financiers as is or top them with whipped cream and berries for a pretty – and addictive! – treat.

Working with a scale is not only easy, but more precise.

The muffin tins are prepared.

You can use the scale for butter, too!

Beautiful eggs from the farmer’s market.

One of our favorite local honeys.

Incorporating the buerre noisette (browned butter)

The batter is almost ready.

Into our substitution for Financier pans.

And we’re done!

Financiers

Chef John Kraus, Patisserie 46

Makes 24

Begin this recipe the night before.

6 Tbsp. butter (80 g)

1/2 c. confectioners’ sugar (110 g)

3 Tbsp. almond flour (40 g)

3 Tbsp. pastry flour or cake flour (40 g)

1/4 tsp. baking powder (1 g)

2 tsp. honey (10 g)

4 large egg whites (110 g)

softly whipped cream

fresh raspberries

Preheat oven to 350 ° F.

Prepare beurre noisette by heating the butter in a saucepan until light brown, then strain.

In a large bowl, stir together all of the dry ingredients.

Whisk in the honey, 1/2 of the egg whites, and the hot, strained butter.  Whisk in the remaining 1/2 of the egg whites.

Cover batter and refrigerate overnight.

Butter a 24-piece mini-muffin tin. Pipe or spoon batter into the cups, filling each half full.

Bake for 10-11 minutes or until financiers are lightly golden brown.  Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack. Serve at room temperature as is or with whipped cream and berries. Store in an airtight container.

Look for Stephanie at www.FreshTart.net

{ 3 comments }

Jeannie June 6, 2011 at 10:20 am

Just gorgeous! Can see why they are so addictive…I have baked with browned butter before and they gave a very nutty taste to my cookies

Keane June 6, 2011 at 3:47 pm

I may just have to break my “no baking” streak in order to give these bad boys a try! They look FANTASTIC!

Lindsay @ Pinch of Yum June 6, 2011 at 4:29 pm

1. I love Patisserie 46! And I love the look of these cupcakes.
2. I just posted today about how much I am enjoying my Ames Honey. 🙂

Go MN foodies!

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