Financiers are delicious French tea cakes. They are rich, buttery and soft, and the perfect size for a little bit of cake that you can eat anytime, anywhere. Historically, financiers were first made in a pastry shop in France that was near the Stock Exchange (hence the name?) as a quick dessert / snack for the busy business men who were the shop's customers. They are traditionally made in little rectangular shaped molds, resulting in cakes that resemble little "bars of gold," but you can improvise at home by using muffin pans, Madeleine pans, or any other type of small mold for baking. I used my new Madeleine pans for my financiers.
Which leads to an interesting question - what exactly is the difference between Madeleines and Financiers? Many would assume that the difference is merely what they are baked in - Madeleines being always made in the shell-shaped molds, and Financiers traditionally being rectangular and less commonly round. If this were the only difference, then wouldn't my use of the Madeleine pans mean I had in fact made Madeleines, even though the recipe was for Financiers? Both are tea cakes, both have a rich flavor and spongy cake-like texture...
Having made both I think there are some differences beyond the shape of the mold they are made in. At least for my own baking purposes, I have a different recipe for making Madeleines than for making Financiers, with different results. The financiers come out a little denser, more "nutty" in their flavor. In addition to including the financier recipe in this post, I'll later post another entry on Madeleines, and you can compare the two recipes (and their results) for yourself!
The basic recipe for financiers is fairly simple, except for its unusual ingredient - almond flour. Almond flour is what gives financiers the uniquely rich, "nutty" flavor. It's basically just almonds that have been blanched and then finely ground. (In fact, I believe that if you have a good food processor you could do this at home with blanched almonds.) If you have trouble finding it in your regular grocery store, you should be able to locate it at Whole Foods, specialty "gourmet" stores, or places that sell supplies for restaurants.
The great thing about financiers is that not only are they delicious just as they come, but they provide a wonderful blank canvas for adding embellishments and making them your own. For my financiers, I also made candied orange peels which I added to the tops of some of the little cakes for variety. You could alternatively add fruit, berries or jam.
Here is my recipe for Basic Financiers (*note - I read and tried a lot of recipes, and after trial and error, this is what worked for me):
Ingredients -
1 stick of unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup of all purpose flour
1 cup of almond flour
1 cup of powdered sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs*
1/2 teaspoon
Additional powdered sugar for sprinkling on top
*many recipes call for egg whites. I used whole eggs and preferred the rich texture that resulted.
Directions-
Heat your oven to about 375 degrees. Using a pastry brush, prepare your molds or pan by brushing with melted butter.
Combine dry ingredients in a bowl first, and mix together thoroughly. Add eggs and melted butter and blend until smooth. Your batter should be creamy and pourable but not to thin. Spoon batter into your molds. I filled each Madeline mold in my pan almost to the rim. Remember, your goal is for the cakes to come out with a raised "mound" on top. Place in the oven and bake approximately 10-12 minutes, or until the tops are slightly browned. They are ready when the cake becomes springy to the touch. Remove from oven and cool on a wire cooling rack. Using a sifter or a wire mesh strainer, sprinkle additional powdered sugar on each cake. *If you are adding berries, candied peels, or something else to your financiers - remove after first 4-5 minutes, add the toppings, then return for remaining 5-7 minutes of baking.
Here's how I made Candied Orange Peels:
1/2 cup of Brown Rice Syrup*
Zest of two oranges - peeled into long "strips" using a peeler or paring knife
* I used organic brown rice syrup that I found at Whole Foods. It's better than using a corn syrup and sugar mixture!
Put rice syrup in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Add orange peel and continue boiling until foaming. Remove from heat. You can leave the orange peel in the syrup for future use (I stored in a jar). For using on your financiers, remove the strips from the syrup (without draining all of the syrup completely off) and place a few strips on each cake.
And here was my finished product:
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