Raspberry and Almond Friands

This year I promised myself many things. One promise was to bake more and to avoid eating processed sweets. But juggling baking, blogging and full-time work is often a struggle, which is why I have decided to focus on simple yet delicious recipes. At least for the moment until I have more time up my sleeve.

I had a great day of baking on Sunday, including some semi disastrous Norwegian cinnamon buns (more on that later…). But I managed to get one recipe right – these raspberry and almond friands.

I almost feel guilty about how simple this recipe is. These little cakes are based on the French financier – and are usually made with almond meal and plenty of egg whites!

These little beauties are perfect to make when you’re in a hurry. And are a great morning or afternoon tea option for surprise guests.

The almond meal in this recipe gives these friands a lovely texture and the addition of raspberries make them even more soft and moist, a lovely contrast to the flaked almonds on top.

They are best served fresh from the oven or at room temperature with a generous dusting of icing sugar.

This recipe makes approximately 10 friands but you can easily double the recipe if you want to bake more. Trust me – they won’t last for long!

You will need

• 150g of unsalted butter
• 5 egg whites
• 90g (3/4 cup) of almond meal
• 180 g (1 cup) of icing sugar and extra for dusting
• 50g (1/3 cup) of plain flour
• 1 125g punnet of fresh raspberries
• Flaked almonds to decorate

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 190 ̊C. Lightly grease 12 x 1/2-cup capacity friand pans.

Melt butter in a small saucepan over low-medium heat. While the butter is melting, lightly whisk the eggs to combine.

Sift icing sugar and flour in a large bowl. Stir in almond meal. Add the butter and beat well.

Pour into the prepared moulds, filling each hole to just two-thirds full. Place two raspberries on each friand and then delicately sprinkle some flaked almonds on top.

Bake for 20–25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. The tops of the friand should be light golden brown.

Allow to cool in pans for 10 minutes. before turning onto a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with icing sugar. Serve.

Bon Appetit!