Financier
A small rectangular cake with a crackling, caramelized crust that gives way to a moist, almond-scented interior perfumed with brown butter — the shell behaves like a biscuit, the center like a warm frangipane. Created by Parisian pastry chefs for bankers who couldn't afford to stain their cuffs.
Ingredients
For 4 servings · tick what is ready
Use the scaled ingredient list. Steps and temperatures stay unchanged; use a larger pan or dish if needed. Seasonings to taste stay to taste.
How to make it
Cut the butter into small pieces and melt in a light-colored saucepan over medium heat. The butter will foam and sputter as the water evaporates. Continue cooking, swirling frequently, until the foam subsides and the milk solids on the pan bottom turn a rich hazelnut brown and the aroma shifts from cream to toffee. Immediately pour through a fine sieve into a bowl to stop the cooking. Cool to room temperature.
Whisk together the almond flour, powdered sugar, all-purpose flour, and salt in a large bowl. Add the unwhipped egg whites and vanilla and stir until a smooth, homogenous paste forms. Pour in the cooled brown butter and stir until fully incorporated and glossy. Do not whip air into the batter — stir gently. Rest the batter for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
Preheat oven to 200 C (390 F). Generously butter the financier molds and freeze for 5 minutes — a properly frozen-butter mold creates the signature crackling shell. Fill molds to within 3 mm of the top. Bake for 12–15 minutes until the edges are deep golden-brown and pulling away from the mold, the center is set but still has a very slight dome-jiggle, and a skewer comes out with moist (not wet) crumbs.
About this recipe
By ForkRecipe Kitchen · Source: ForkRecipe / FoodML and contributors. Recipe content available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Serving count is an estimate; check quantities in the source recipe.