Financier - Sweet Bite to Go With Your Coffee

Vanilla custard, creme brulée, floating islands and ice – cream are very popular among my kids, for this reason I regularly end up with excess egg whites. I hate to throw them away so I usually put them in plastic bags and into the freezer. Sooner or later the time comes when wherever I look in the freezer, there is a batch of egg whites.

Apart from meringues and Pavlova, this is my favorite recipe for getting rid of leftover egg whits sitting in the freezer. It’s easy to make, variable and absolutely delicious!

Step 1: You'll Need

Ingredients of the batter

8 egg whites (approximately 235 g for those of you using frozen egg whites)

140 g sugar

140 g icing sugar

140 g ground almonds

110 g flour

1 pinch of salt

250 g butter

Topping (in the photo starting from the top, clockwise)

freeze - dried strawberries

raisins

dried apricots chopped

cocoa beans chopped

chocolate chopped

dried pineapple pieces

dried cranberries

sliced almonds

dried plums in pieces

pistachios, dried lemon zest

Matcha tea, ground cinnamon

This was the first time I put freeze - dried fruits on top of the financiers. And the last. It did not prove to be a good idea.

Appliances:

Stand mixer

saucepan

piping bag

silicone mold

Step 2: Boil the Butter

Put the butter into a saucepan and start heating it on medium heat. Once the whole block of butter is melted, turn the heat to medium - high. Soon you'll see relatively large bubbles on the surface and thick foam will form. Keep boiling for 2 - 3 minutes stirring occasionally until the foam is gone.

Step 3: The Batter

In the meantime, put all dry ingredients into the mixer bowl and give it a stir. Keep stirring and slowly pour the egg whites until fully combined. You'll get a thick batter. While stirring continuously, slowly pour the HOT butter into the mixture (see video). The butter will be completely absorbed.

Step 4: Rest

Transfer the batter into a piping bag. When there's no one around to give me a hand, I place the piping bag into a jug with the sides folded back. Twist the end of the piping bag, close it with a clip, or two for safety reasons. Put it into the fridge to rest overnight.

Step 5: Get Ready to Finish Off Your Cakes

Gather your toppings. Chose your favorite nuts, berries, spices. I call them toppings, but they go also in the middle of each cake.

Step 6: Fill the Moulds

Press 1 layer of batter into the mold, add toppings you like. Repeat: cover with another layer of batter, scatter with toppings. Don't fill the form til the rim, cakes will rise. Bake in the preheated oven (180 C) for about 12-14 minutes until the cakes are golden brown.

It is a classic financier silicone mold in the photo. The name of the cake itself is said to originate from the shape of the mold as it resembles gold bars. You might use the same batter in other bite-sized mold forms, it will taste just as good.