A financier is a pretty little French tea cake that tastes like caramelized butter, vanilla, and almonds. Ahhhhhh caramelized butter…. sorry, we were daydreaming about how freaking AMAZING caramelized butter tastes. For these simple, delightful beauties, we added our own twist to this classic recipe by combining the flavors of pistachio and lemon to this scrumptious little cake. Make sure to eat this pure bite of deliciousness straight from the oven with a cup of coffee or tea! Or think outside the box and pair these fancy financiers with wine because real life calls for wine and for us - wine is always the right decision!
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Makes 8 muffin-size financiers
Ingredients:
½ cup shelled unsalted green pistachios
7 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 vanilla bean, split open and seeds scraped out
1 lemon, zested
⅓ cup white rice or cassava flour
⅓ cup sugar
½ teaspoon kosher salt
4 large egg whites, beaten lightly until foamy
Instructions:
Optional garnishes: powdered sugar, lemon zest, and chopped pistachios
Preheat oven to 350℉
Line a muffin pan with 8 paper liners and set aside.
Grind the pistachios to a fine powder using a food processor, or spice grinder, and set aside.
In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat; toss in the vanilla bean and seeds. Cook until the butter begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the rice flour, ground pistachios, lemon zest, sugar, and salt; set aside.
With a stand mixer, or hand mixer, whisk the egg whites until white and foamy. Stir the egg whites into the flour mixture until smooth. Then quickly stir in the brown butter.
Fill 8 muffin liners about ⅓ to ½ full with batter. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the middle of each cake comes out dry.
Garnish with a light sprinkle of powdered sugar, lemon zest, and chopped pistachios if desired.